The Last Flight
by Demonatron
Summary: It's been four years since Egypt, and she is stronger than ever. The appearance of an old enemy shatters her temporary peace, but it is the birth of a new nightmare that threatens to destroy them all. Set after 'Dear Sister', DOES NOT FOLLOW DOTM.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

She was on a mission.

Stalking through the darkness, she went over the objectives in her processor. Again and again, until they were memorized. The floor was cold but she pushed it aside as she found something she could climb. Up she went. It was a very long climb, with loose footholds that shook and slipped beneath her claws, but _she_ was _very_ strong and _very_ quick.

Mere minutes later, she was at the top. Luckily the surface was flat and wide, so she could hide herself from any unwanted optics if she huddled down in the center. She stared out from the shadows, waiting in silence for her prey like the perfect predator. She was _lethal. _And dangerous. And deadly.

Time passed. Seconds turned into minutes, minutes into an hour...but she did not move. She stayed frozen, optics dim so they wouldn't alert him of her location. Finally, after so much careful planning and waiting, the door slid open, and in walked the massive black mech. The lights turned on when he made his entrance, revealing a long table with tools and half-built weapons.

He turned to one, a large cannon-like weapon. Even from way up there, her sharp optics could make out the tiny details. How long it must have taken him to create something like this..._Don't attach yourself to the enemy,_ she thought harshly, _he is prey._

She shifted forward slowly, claws making no sound. She tensed her body, focusing her strength into her legs, and leaped high into the air. She spiraled down silently in a fluid motion, spreading her claws for the attack. Below, the monstrous mech was pulling the half-made cannon towards him, picking up tools to continue his work. He was completely oblivious as she fell upon him with a snarl.

She slammed into is scarred armor, locking her claws around a plate of it. She opened her jaws, but was forced to give up her assault. For such a big mech, he reacted quickly and she found herself caught up in his hands. She growled and struggled as he pinned her much smaller body to the table with just one. He stared down at her with cold blue optics, and spoke the words, "Do you yield?"

With a sharp vent, she managed to slip between his fingers. She moved as fast as she could, jumping up his arm until she was on his shoulder. The look on his face was priceless as she dropped down his armor and locked down on the plates in the very center of his back, the one place he _couldn't_ reach. She grinned when he tried to anyway, and countered, "Do _you _yield?"

After another moment of pointless efforts, he answered, "Do I have a choice, sparkling?"

Her grin grew, and she unlocked her joins and climbed back up to perch on his shoulder, "I got you that time, huh, 'Hide?"

"Don't get cocky."

She settled on his armor, looping her tail over his thick neck for support, "You couldn't even reach me."

"One time opposed to how many failures?"

"I'm getting better," she started, tone defensive, "I bet you didn't even know I was in here."

He grumbled something like he was aggravated, but he made no attempt to remove her. She watched him work on the cannon in quiet for a minute before lowering her red optics to the multiple scars scattered over his armor. She traced her claws very lightly over a deep gouge in the plate she was sitting on, "I wish momma and daddy would come back already...I really miss them."

"They'll return soon."

"Yeah...hey, 'Hide?"

"What."

"You're going to be there when I get my wings, right?"

He grunted a response, but she knew him well enough to know it was a 'yes grunt'. He understood that it was very important to her, or she hoped he did. She knew that she bothered him most of the time, but he had wonderful stories of battle and heroism that she loved. Jetfire, too. Outside of her dad and Optimus, they were her two favorite mechs. The older one had already promised her. Even if he didn't say it, she believed that Ironhide would be there also.

She shook a little. Her body felt too tight, and there was a great emptiness inside of her where the wind and the skies should be. She belonged up there, high in the clouds. It had been her dream for as long as she could remember. When her creators returned, they'd have her second frame, and with it her first set of wings.

She could hardly wait...but they'd been gone for several days now. Optimus had sent them on an 'emergency scouting mission' last week. She was tense, and as patient as a sparkling could possibly be. But not worried. She never worried about them, because both, her mom and dad were the strongest bots she knew, and when they were together they were even _stronger_. It was why Optimus always sent them out together, because he knew they'd take care of each other.

"Tell me a story, 'Hide," she said quietly, laying down. He started, dividing his attention between his weapon and speaking easily. This one was about the very beginning of the war, the autobots were still reeling from the first decepticon assault...

She sunk deep into it, imagining every scene in her processor. Sometime half way into it, Chromia entered. Her optics softened when they fell upon them, and she said nothing the entire time he was talking. She took her place on the other side of the table, working on her own project.

Near the end, the door slid open again to reveal a rather exhausted Optimus. The tiredness left his face when he spotted her on the weapon specialist's shoulder, "I've been searching for you all day, Sundance."

"Optimus!" She slipped over the black mech's shoulders and jumped, small body clearing the distance between them. He was surprised but he caught her, fingers curling around her protectively. She dropped her head and nuzzled into his palm, "I've just been here with 'Hide! I wasn't doing anything wrong! Honest!"

"Other than causing a distraction," Ironhide added. She ignored him, running up the taller mech's arm and over his shoulder. She settled in a safe place where she couldn't get squished by his armor, "Are they back yet?"

"Not yet," he nodded towards the other two and walked back out, "but Jolt sent in a report and asked how you were."

It was then that her mech creator pulled on their bond, reaching through and wrapping her up in his love. Sundance huddled down in her spot and smiled, warmth flooding through her as her mother did the same. _'Soon, Sundance,' _she said through the bond, _'I miss you.'_

_'I miss you more,' _she sent back. She reached back to them and gave them a big hug with her spark.

"What story did Ironhide tell you this time?" Optimus asked once they were back in what everyone called his 'office'. Sundance poked her head out of her safe place and put it on his shoulder armor. She ran through what she could remember of the tale in her processor before starting. He never interrupted, and even left his work alone in favor of leaning back in his chair to listen in comfort.

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><p><strong>It's four years after 'Dear Sister'. Sundance is still in her first frame but she can talk fluently now...as you can see she's developed a 'best friend' relationship with trigger-happy Ironhide and 'rust-in-my-arse' Jetfire. :D she loves Optimus and has a strong bond with both parents...<strong>

**Sometime while writing Dear Sister, my brain pulled a fast one on me and made up this image of Ironhide telling Sundance a story about the wars(the less gruesome parts, anyway)...so I had to put it in there somewhere...Jetfire, too. I think Jetfire would be a good story teller if he could just remember things and stop scratching at rusty armor...but then again, those are what makes him who he is, so maybe not...**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed it! Much love to you!**

**Sundance and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The warm spring air rolled off her form as she cut across the darkening sky. The stars were lighting around her, and a moon rested in the distance, a bloated orb that was growing brighter by the moment. She made a slow spiral, righting just as she passed over the mechs below. Her hidden optics caught the flash of rich blue armor minutes after she felt the tug on her spark that signaled the closeness of her bonded. As she soared over them, the second mech on the ground, wounded and nervous, cast up a worried look.

_I can change my faction, I can change my purpose, I can change the badge, but I can't change the armor..._she thought darkly. Although she was far from the decepticon she once was, she still _looked_ the part, and she was making this newcomer _very_ uncomfortable. He had just crash-landed on earth, the reason why Optimus had sent her and her mate out so quickly and with such a small explanation. And she was up in the air, keeping an optic on them and their surroundings, because this mech knew nothing about her. To him, she was a threat, even if Jolt told him time and time again that she was autobot at spark.

He saw the armor, the optics...and that was all.

She vented sharply, trying to reign in her aggravation and the sadness. Aggravated because she only wanted to help, sad because she still couldn't escape her heritage.

_You should be proud, _a thought whispered through her processor, _half of that heritage belongs to the autobots. Prime said Angelus was the best of her generation when it came to the Medical Field, she cared for each mech and femme equally. This is the part of you that matters._

She'd never told anyone about Angelus, or Paradox. Not even the ones she shared bonds with. Prime didn't know. Sundance didn't know. Jolt could find out if he took advantage of their bond and entered her mind. But he would never do something like that, not unless he knew it was okay.

The same mech sensed her troubled thoughts, and touched her through the bond. She leaned into his strength when he pulled at her, any distress leaving her immediately. He asked, _'I'm trying, Demona. He's convinced that you're out for our sparks...he's frantic...'_

Regret weighed down his words like anchors. She could feel his emotions easily...and right now he was feeling just as he sounded. Demona understood what he was getting at, and turned up into the sky without another word. She climbed until she was a 'safe' ways away and left them to search for decepticons in the area. Jolt squeezed her spark lovingly, _'I'm sorry.'_

_'It's fine, Jolt. I would feel the same if I were him.'_

He stayed close, but she felt it when he turned back to repairs. So she returned to her patrolling, keeping her sensors on high alert, even if the possibility of an attack was highly unlikely.

Since his defeat in Egypt, Megatron had stayed a bad memory. Four years of peace, and he had yet to show his face and screw everything to the pit. None of his pawns had made an appearance either, save the occasional annoying cocky rebel. They never stuck around long though.

Even if there hadn't been a real threat in these past years, she wasn't about to ease up. There was reason why the decepticons were called the decepticons, and she would be the very last one to let herself go soft in hopes of a permanent peace.

_'He's chosen an alternate and is mobile. We're rolling out.'_

_'You lead this time,' _she answered, making a slow U-turn. She knew where they were without seeing them because of Jolt, and never came in sight of them. She sunk into the silence surrounding her, taking the moment of free time to reach through to Sundance.

Her sparkling was with Optimus, jumping around his quarters while he sat at his desk and tried-and perhaps failed-to work. She was bothered by the smallness of her body, and the lack of wings, but she was making do with this. It was fun to see how much farther she could leap every time, and that brief second she was in the air was pure bliss. Demona smiled.

Together, Demona and Jolt had made Sundance's second frame, with some occasional help from Ratchet or Ironhide. The little dragon had yet to see her new body, but she knew deep in her spark that Sundance would love it. Her first pair of wings were beautiful, built completely by her mech creator. Demona herself could hardly wait to share the skies with her creation.

Sundance chose that moment to reach through to her and give her a big hug with her spark. Demona returned it without hesitation, tilting her form as the winds changed. She pulled at the bond with Prime, _'Has she driven you insane yet?'_

_'Not yet,' _his voice was strained. She almost laughed when he added, _'when are you two planning on returning?'_

_'The new arrival is mobile. We're on our way back to base now.'_

Her spark tightened in her chest, and not in a good way. Her core went cold. Demona slowed down, sending out a thorough scan to search for enemies. At first, she found nothing. She kept searching though, and the second time around she found something. She opened a three-way link between herself and the two mechs she was accompanying, _'Decepticon signal, approaching fast. I'm flying ahead-'_

* * *

><p><em>'-To take care of it.' <em>She finished, voice echoing in his processor. Jolt refrained from venting sharply. _Primus. _Instead, he exercised the bond and sent her spark a tug of warning. He used the open link to speak to her, _'Demona, don't.'_

her form passed over them, concealed high in the clouds. The sky was growing dark, the stars had come out to dance. They were still a long ways away from base...Wheeljack's ruined vocal processors and his wariness of Jolt's mate and _her_ inability to stay out of a mess weren't making the trip any easier.

After a week of searching for a mech that was too damaged to send out a distress signal, and after many hours of repairing the same mech, he was tired. Demona helped ease the weariness just by being there, and she was always willing to let him lean on her for strength or comfort when he needed it. But he was ready to return to base, to their quarters for a long recharge. He was ready to go back and see their sparkling. Demona understood. He could tell that she felt the same way.

He loved his femme to the very core of his spark, but _Primus, _she could be _so_ hardheaded.

_'Easy, mech. I've already passed you...there's only one and it's certainly not Megatron,'_ Demona said, a tint of amusement to her voice.

_Not going to win this one, either, _he thought. This time, he vented, and rather sharply. Ahead of them, she was smiling. As worried and worn as he was, he couldn't harden his voice to show it. It came out soft over the public link, _'Be safe.'_

_'Always, love.'_

She remained ahead of them. After some time, Wheeljack began to use the communications link, _'She's...an autobot?'_

_'Yes, one of Prime's most trusted soldiers.'_

_'Just __**who**__ is she?'_

Before he could answer, Demona's attention was stolen and he felt her spark harden as her combat routines kicked on. She wasn't that far ahead...they could reach her if she needed the assistance. That knowledge eased his processor. He increased speed as high as he could go without leaving Wheeljack behind. The mech was still injured after all, but not nearly as badly as before.

A heavy fog had fallen over the land, the temperature had dropped considerably. The chilled cloud that spread out across the earth broke in swirls around the form of a sleek silver car. The engine snarled, moonlight shining off the armor almost blindingly.

Jolt pulled ahead on impulse, defense routines started up. He knew Demona was close, very close...

Before he could meet the decepticon, his femme dropped out of the sky and landed on the mech's roof, punching through his armor like tin with her toe-claws and bending his very frame beneath the force of the impact. The engine stuttered and whined as he continued to move forward, sparks flying from where his body made contact with the concrete. Jolt and Wheeljack slid to a halt, tires squealing. Luckily, all of them stopped before they collided and caused even more damage.

Demona retracted her claw blades, "I told you."

Wheeljack, surprisingly, was the first of the two mechs to transform. He stood, staring at her with confused optics, "Who are you? You look and fight like a decepticon, but you're an autobot..."

Jolt shifted forms, stepping into a walk before his armor even stopped rearranging. Demona's optics fell on him and softened. She stepped down from her perch and came to stand beside him, answering the inventor's question, "My designation is Demona, and I am Jolt's sparkmate."

Pride swelled up inside of him. While it was still an odd subject for him to speak about to comrades or friends, it didn't bother Demona at all. She had no problem staking her claim on him, and every time she said the words it made his spark heat up like it had the first few days he'd spent with her four years ago.

Wheeljack just stared. Jolt didn't think it was possible for his optics to get any wider. The inventor raised a hand to point at them, "You're...?"

Jolt slipped an arm around her waist, keeping her close. She didn't seem to mind at all. She continued speaking, "Wheeljack, right?"

"Y-yes."

"Welcome to Earth."

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><p><strong>Wheeljack is most likely off, but I figure he has a right to fear her at first... My bad. <strong>

**This one took a good four-six hours to write. The goal was to show how close these two have gotten and that Demona is still in good shape for battle. The new arrival was going to remain a mystery, but I got to thinking about Rex and the Chevy twins and was like 'ah hell, what if we tossed some explosions in there?' Solution: Wheeljack. **

**Anyway, will have more up tomorrow. Love you guys!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers and it's original characters do not. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Hi Ratchet!"

_"Wonderful."_

Sundance grinned, crouching in the shadow of the berth closest to him that wasn't occupied by tools and instruments. She tilted her head, calculating how much strength she'd need and what angle was just right...She wiggled back a step, tensed her legs, and jumped. Her claws clattered on the metal of the berth and she slid a ways before she came to a stop. He said, "Shouldn't you be pestering Optimus?"

"He's in recharge." Sundance gave a little shake, trying to loosen the armor that was pulled tight around her body, "I didn't want to wake him up..."

"So you came here instead."

Sundance tilted her head, settling down on the cold metal. She watched him as he worked on something, back to her. The artificial light gleamed off his yellow armor, making the color seem even brighter. They also outlined his scars..._everyone has scars. _The grin disappeared. She started, "Hey Ratchet...do _you_ have stories?"

He paused.

"Daddy says that you're the best medic here, better than himself, and that you've save a _lot_ of lives. Just like Optimus and 'Hide."

"Sparkling," he started, "there is more to the war than 'heroism and victory'."

"I know..." She lowered her voice, arching her neck to look down at her own red claws, the same color of her mother's armor. She couldn't help but wonder if someday she'd be taking part.

She could see it-her third frame was big and powerful, with sharp claws and thick fangs. She would have more plates of armor that could expand and contract to make movement so much easier, and her wings...they would carry her into battle. She would soar above them all and hunt them like a true predator. A warrior. She would be a warrior. And she would make a difference, just like her mother.

"Battle is not full of glory," he kept on, "yes, we save lives, but we lose them, too."

"But if we remember them," Sundance said quietly, "and never forget...they'll live on."

He put down what he was working on and turned to her, hands on his hips. He sent her a look she couldn't quite read. When he spoke again, his voice was unusually soft, "Which one of your creators told you that?"

"Daddy. He said that he's lost mechs that were like brothers to him, and that he never forgets them, and that's how he keeps them alive."

Silently, the medic lowered his hand and opened it, palm up. Sundance smiled and jumped up, bounding over to him. She held on as he raised her up to his shoulder, where she climbed down and settled. Ratchet turned back to his work. She let the silence linger, entertaining herself by watching him work.

He moved differently than Ironhide when he worked. His hands were quicker, but they moved smoother. Ironhide took his time, often turning his work over to check and recheck for mistakes or missing pieces. Ratchet only paused every once and a while.

Unexpectedly, he spoke, "Have you seen your second frame?"

She vented sharply, "No. They wouldn't let me...but you've seen it. Tell me what it looks like, Ratchet! Please!"

He chuckled, "It's red."

She squinted her optics at him, "Like I had _no idea_ it was red _before_..."

Sundance opened her jaws to say something else when her creators tugged on her spark, effectively drawing her attention away. It was then that she realized just how _close _they both were. She pushed herself up and scrambled down his arm with a happy squeal, optics bright and a huge smile spreading across her face. Ratchet's fingers slipped around her body before he managed to get a hold of her and set her safely on the floor. She took off without another word, singing as she rushed down the halls and towards the hangar.

Her little legs carried her quickly. She ducked and dodged between big autobot feet, passing Optimus and Jazz on the way. Her spark soared when she turned into the hangar and actually heard their voices. Flashes of deep blue and rose red drew her optics, and she nearly hurled her body at them before they even finished transforming.

She landed right in her femme creator's hands and sprung up to her shoulder where she climbed over and slid into the warm spot beside her throat cables. Sundance nuzzled into her mother and squeezed her spark as tight as she could with her love. Before Demona could raise her hands to touch her, she was gone, leaping over to Jolt next.

She stood up on her rear legs and wrapped her arms around as much of his cheek as she could, stretching her neck to look him in the eye, "I missed you, daddy!"

Again, before he could react, she darted away. She dropped around his neck and appeared on his other shoulder, squinting at a completely new mech, "I haven't seen you before..."

He looked shocked out of his processors, but the look faded and turned into one of softness, "What's your designation, little one?"

"I'm Sundance! _This_ is my daddy," she dropped her head and nosed a plate of that beautiful blue armor. "And _this_ is my momma!" She ran over his shoulders again like she was going to jump back, but he moved too quick for her and soon he was lifting her into the air in front of him. Although he didn't have lip plates like her mother and Optimus and Ironhide and Jetfire, she could see the soft smile in his optics. He warned gently, "Careful, Sundance."

"I'm just so excited you're finally back!" She grinned at him. Optimus, Ironhide, and Ratchet stepped inside then. Ratchet raised an optic ridge, "We are too...I can promise you there hasn't been a dull or _quiet_ moment since you left."

Jolt laughed. He brought her closer to his chest and held her there with one hand. Sundance curled her tail around his fingers and laid down, head propped up on a plate of his chest armor. She shuttered her optics, listening to the hum of his spark, and slipped into recharge with a smile in her face, safe and happy in their arms again.

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><p><strong>Sorry it's late...lot of crap happened today, and none of it was good...<strong>

**I'll answer reviews tomorrow. Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Demona watched as student and teacher worked together. She stood back so she wasn't in the way, near Prime. Sundance rested on one end of the berth, in a medical stasis lock, her second frame a few feet away, wings spread over the cool metal and chest plates pulled open so the transfer of the spark would be easier.

Ratchet stepped closer to Sundance and managed to ease out Sundance's spark, using some type of instrument that she couldn't even begin to name. The spark was a vivid violet, and it glowed as bright as a little star. It was in view only for a second before it was being lowered into the chest of the larger body. Jolt was busy attaching wires and cables, completely focused on it.

After several long moments of quiet, the systems inside the smaller body slowed to a stop, while the other came to life, frame jerking slightly. The wings stretched outward, and Sundance onlined. She blinked up at the two medics almost blankly, before she brought her new claws closer to her face and clenched them. No one spoke as she turned over to her belly and stood up. She arched her neck, looking at her new limbs, before she lifted her wings and spread them out.

She looked at one, then the other, a big smile spreading pulling at her mouth. She shook lightly, and bounded across the berth to latch on to the two mechs. She was several times larger than she had been, now Gears and Pockets wouldn't be able to pick her up.

"Thank you!" Sundance sang. Before they could react, she jumped away, a little clumsy since her legs were longer. Her wings spread to fly when she pushed off the edge of the berth...and down she went.

Luckily, Demona was expecting it, and knelt to catch her in her arms. Sundance vented sharply, "Why couldn't I...?"

"Because you're inside," Demona answered, "there is no wind to catch you."

"So I have to go outside?"

"Yes."

Sundance settled down against her chest, "Can we go? _Please_?"

Not so long after they were gathered outside. Since, Ironhide and Jazz had joined. Jetfire was outside, leaning his cane with a soft look in his red optics. The decepticon badge on his armor had been replaced by the autobot symbol shortly after Primes revival. And although he was the butt of plenty of pranks from the twins, he had become a loyal member of the faction. Sundance sung a greeting out to him. He smiled back at her.

Demona lifted her hands. Sundance tensed, suddenly uncertain as she took a glance down. If she messed up and fell out of the sky, it'd hurt really bad if she hit the ground from this height. She knew her family was there as well as her friends, but what if her parents didn't catch her? What if they couldn't reach her in time?

She wrapped her new claws around her mother's fingers, huddling down slightly. She pulled her wings in tight, still adjusting to the new limbs, and reached for her parents for support through their bond. They both responded. Demona said, "It's instinct for us, Sundance. Once you're in the sky, you'll know what to do."

"She's right, youngling," Jetfire agreed, "as soon as you feel the winds beneath your wings..."

"Momma," Sundance asked, turning back to her mother, "how did you learn?"

She regretted asking when she saw a look of pain cross Demona's optics. She still answered, "I was tossed off a cliff. I had no choice but to fly."

Sundance winced. Demona squeezed her spark lovingly, "We'll catch you if you fall, Sundance, I promise."

The tension eased. Sundance could feel it in her spark, her mother was right. She was surrounded by her friends and family, and they would always be there to help her. Sundance turned her face up, staring up at the clear blue sky. She felt the call deep down, pulled her wings in, and crouched. Her mother pushed her up into the air, and she pushed off her hands as hard as she could.

The warm air rolled off her armor. As she crested the arc, she opened her wings. The wind lifted her, and she soared. For the first time, she flew outside of her dreams.

Sundance sang.

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><p><strong>Not what I was expecting, sorry. I've got my oldest pair of nephews over and in the past twenty-four hours, they've broken my playstation, a memory card, both controllers, nearly broken a movie, driven me up the wall, and just about cleaned out my fridge. To say I'm stressed might be a minor understatement. I've also got school work and a bunch of other things to do, and it doesn't help me at all that I'm the world's biggest procrastinator...anyway, enough with my rant. <strong>

**Again, sorry. I know it's kinda slow and awkward, but it'll get better...at least I hope. We should be seeing the James family here soon, and maybe some 'real' action. **

**Love to the readers. **

**Demona and her family, and the story, belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Zachary Rex James, what the _hell _are you doing?"

Rex lifted his cold soda and stuck the straw in his mouth. He slurped, as loud as he could, raising his eyebrows behind his aviator shades. His boss stepped into the shop, scarred hands on her hips and pale green eyes fixed on him. Her red hair was pulled back in a high pony tail, and she was wearing her working jeans and an old tank. She raised raised a fine brow, "You better answer me, boy."

"Albert Einstein says 'Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand'," he answered, "right now, I'm imagining a beach and some hot-ass dark haired senoritas..."

"You do realize that you're sitting in a lawn chair with sunglasses on inside a building, right?"

"Why you gotta be hatin' on my imagination?"

"'Hot-ass senoritas' are not going to get this truck back up and running, and you're hours aren't up yet, so up you get."

"Ah, come on Misses James. The girls are playing volley ball-"

"Imagination can get you far kid, but you gotta be willing to work for it, too."

He frowned, watching as she turned and limped back towards the door. He muttered, "Hater."

She was back in half a second, "I'm about to beat the hell outta you, Rex..."

He opened his mouth to say something when the door opened. A voice they hadn't heard in several months called, "Hey, mom."

"Alec!" Gears exclaimed, "babe, when did you get here?"

Rex was up and the sun glasses were gone in one motion. He stared at his best friend, eyes wide.

Pockets was even bigger than he had been senior year. He was like a solid pillar of strength. He _still_ didn't have an inch of fat on him, and carried a number of scars on his arms and on his face that drove the bad girls wild. He still had a thick head of his momma's dark red hair, and his eyes were as green as ever, but they were tired, too. His skin was tan from working at the construction site out of town.

_Lucky bastard,_ Rex thought with a grin. _He's got a job, goes to college, and he's even got himself a little country girl. _Rex himself was doing _almost _as good. He had the job part down, working here in Gears' own shop since she'd been forced to slow down since her injuries four years ago. He had the girlfriend part down, even though she was so different than Jo that he was positive they'd tear each other's throats out if they ever met. College though...that was a completely different matter. He'd kicked the bucket on that dream a _long _time ago.

Gears rushed over and threw her arms around him. He hugged her back, "This morning...I stopped by Jo's on the way, but I think she was at the hospital."

"Yeah, her momma hasn't been doing too well lately," Gears said softly, "the boys are taking it hard, but Jo's a strong girl. She'll do whatever she can to take care of them."

She stepped back when Rex reached them. Pockets grinned at him, "Hey Rex, how's it going?"

"DUDE. I haven't seen you in _ages_," Rex hugged him then stepped back and swung up an arm to smack against his chest, "what the hell, man? No letters, no phone calls, not even a friggin' text..."

"Between college and work," Pockets shrugged tiredly, leaving the sentence open. Gears sent him a soft look, "No time?"

"No energy."

"Well how long are you home?"

"Not long, a week or two," he answered. He blinked when he noticed the absence of a certain twelve year old. He scanned his eyes over the room, then settled a confused look on Gears, "Where's Alex? It's past three thirty."

Gears sighed, raising a hand to push through the strands of hair that had come lose, "Detention. I'm going to pick him up at four."

"_Detention_?"

Rex scratched at the back of his head, "Yeah...he kinda...ran over someone with his wheel chair."

"He _what_?"

"He's been having trouble with the other kids lately. Middle schools been really hard on him, and he's...well, since Prime asked Demona to move to base, he's just been hurting. He's got all this pain and and anger inside of him and he won't let anyone help him."

Pockets fell silent, eyes turning away to fix on the empty space in the garage, Demona's space. Critter's space, too, because he had practically glued himself to her after the kidnapping. _That explains why she's gone..._

"You've missed a ton of crap, Pockets," Rex said, shaking his head, "that's a lot of catching up to do."

"No kidding..." Pockets said quietly, "but why would Demona just leave? I thought the decepticons were gone."

Gears leaned against the wall, "They're not gone, they're just hiding like cowards because they know we'll kick their ass. Prime asked Demona to come back because he needed her. We've been getting a lot of new arrivals, and most of them don't know how to make a landing. He called her back because she's got this knack for finding the injured faster than anyone else. He sends her out with Jolt as soon as he catches word that someones come down to earth. That way they get to them fast and make sure they survive the crash."

"Did she want to?"

Rex chipped in, "No. She didn't say it, but we know she wanted to stay. She's been paranoid about Megatron coming back and taking off with us again...but you know her."

"She wouldn't ignore Prime," Pockets finished softly.

"She still tries to come back and check on us," Gears took over again, "but between hunting for autobots and fighting whatever evil jackasses are brave or stupid enough to show their faces, and Sundance and Jolt...she doesn't get away much."

Pockets sighed, and turned to go back out. Rex squinted at him, "Where are you going?"

"To pick up my baby brother," Pockets answered, "I'll try to talk to him."

"Be careful, babe." Gears patted his arm. He nodded and left, jingling his keys as he went.

* * *

><p><strong>The families coming back together...O.O Rex with a girlfriend. Who in the world would be crazy enough to...<strong>

**Love to the readers. **

**Demona and her family, the story, belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Pockets was standing inside, by the office, when Critter was released.

The twelve year old wasn't alone. He rolled around the corner in his wheel chair, green eyes narrowed as a group of older boys herded around him, laughing loudly and reaching down to slap him on the back every once in a while like they were _best _friends. Pockets' eyes darkened, and he straightened from leaning on the wall.

Critter saw him move in the corner of his eyes and looked at him. For a brief moment, the coldness in his gaze lifted and Pockets saw his little brother as he used to be. But it was a mere flash, and that happy innocence and unconditional love was gone like it had never been. He paused briefly. Pockets walked over, "Hey, Alex."

The others froze, eyes getting as round as dinner plates once they finally noticed him. He stared up at him, shocked into silence. Critter stayed where he was and stayed cool, "When did you get back, Alec?"

"Today," he answered, reaching down to ruffle his hair, "C'mon little brother, we should get going before Rex eats all the food, huh?"

The second 'little brother' came out of his mouth, the other kids made a quick retreat. Critter started off, moving ahead of him. Pockets hesitated, raising a hand to push through his hair tiredly, worried gaze fixed on the younger.

He followed him out and opened the door to his old Toyota. At first, Pockets leaned down to help him but Critter pushed his hands away with, "I got it."

He hauled himself from one chair to another, shifting around until he was comfortable before buckling up. Pockets unlocked the wheel chair and folded it down. After it was loaded, he got in and started up the car.

They rode in silence for several minutes outside the radio and the running AC, until Critter started, "Go ahead. I know you're dying to ask."

Pockets sent him an odd look, "Ask what?"

"I'm sure mom told you about me running some idiot over at school. Aren't you going to give me the whole anger doesn't answer any problems speech?"

Pockets didn't reply right away. He thought through a response. It wasn't until the car rolled to a halt at a stop sign that he finally answered, "Alex...I love you, kid, you're my one and only little brother, and you know I would take a bullet for you. I'm not going to ask because I trust you. If you don't want to tell me, that's fine. Just remember that I'm here, and I'm never going to turn away from you. I'll always be there, even if I'm at work or studying. Just give me a call and I'll listen, I promise."

"Everyone breaks promises," Critter whispered, "so don't bother."

Pockets studied him. A lance of pain burned through him when he heard the words, knowing exactly what the boy was thinking about. He said quietly, "She loves you, Alex. She hasn't broken any promise."

"She left," Critter stared out the window, "she broke every promise she ever made."

Again, Pockets pushed a hand through his hair. He turned back to the road and started up again. The pain lingered, and he thought about better times when they had all been together. The war had brought them together. Why was peace pulling them apart?

* * *

><p><strong>Short chapter...there should be another up today. Hopefully. If I don't kill my nephews first, because the idea is becoming more likeable with each passing hour...<strong>

**Poor Critter. :(**

**Love to the readers, I hope you enjoy.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me, Transformers does not.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Sundance pulled her wings in and spiraled, body curving towards the ground. She spread them again to slow her descent, keeping them angled so that she wouldn't end up pulling back into the sky. She stretched her legs out for the landing, spark tightening...she would make it this time. She would land _without _crashing.

The earth came closer and closer. She opened her claws and touched the soil. With a yelp, she hit the ground with her face and went rolling head-over-tail right down the slight incline. She rolled into a pair of huge hands, hands that lifted her to a pair of old red optics. Sundance shook out the dirt from her armor with a sharp vent, "I'm never going to get this right!"

Indeed, she'd tried landing several times since she'd first taken flight, and each one had been failure. Although her mother had wanted her to come inside after a time, she'd refused. Demona had only left her when Jetfire promised to help her. That had been several hours ago. Now the sun was setting, and she was so tired...her wings were sore.

She blinked and looked up when the plates of Jetfire's beard clinked together. He started, "Have I ever told you the story of my first flight?"

"No..." she answered.

Jetfire raised her to his shoulder where she climbed down and held on as he pushed himself up and picked up his cane, "Many years before the birth of your own creators, there was a great battle that took place in one of Cybertron's most beautiful cities. I was your age, and I was caught in the middle of it. I watched from our home as my father fought valiantly, striking fear into the sparks of his enemies. He was the best of the Seekers, a powerful warrior and one of the very first to come down to earth alongside the Fallen. But even the greatest of mechs become victim to a replenishing army of enemies. I watched him battle, and I watched him fall. When he did, the enemy started to overrun the city, and I, young and stupidly brave, left the safety of our home to fight in his place..."

Sundance sat up, tilting her horned head and listening intently. All the aches and pains seemed to vanish as she sunk deep into his story. His voice changed tones as he went from scene to scene, and he exaggerated some parts with a wave of his cane or a gesture with his hand. He had a much different way of telling stories than Ironhide. Jetfire nearly took her back in time when he spoke.

Before long, a smile spread across her face and she settled.

* * *

><p>"What's wrong?" Jolt asked, organizing the tools he'd brought with him on the trip to find Wheeljack. He put each one in whatever container it belonged in, waiting for her to answer him. He could feel that she was far away in her thoughts. Her spark was uneasy.<p>

"I've been away for so long," she finally said after another long minute of silence. Her tone was soft and almost distant. It worried him some. He knew immediately what she was talking about, "Your human family."

"I haven't gone back for several months..."

"Prime has been keeping us busy..." he agreed, pausing when he realized everything was all mixed up. He almost became frustrated, until he remembered that Sundance had probably been in and out quite a few times this past week. She probably got the bright idea to 'rearrange' for him while he was gone. Again. His spark warmed. She could be a little pest sometimes, but he loved her, and little things like this made this place home to him.

He started over. This time, he pulled _everything _out and set about placing it all in the correct places. Demona crouched beside him and began to help. Although it wasn't what she specialized in, she could serve as a decent medic by herself, so she knew what everything was and had figured out how he organized things a while ago. His spark hummed the second she stepped in his direction, reacting to her like always.

"I hate being away from them," she continued, "they've saved me from death and helped me find my way through a pit of darkness, and I can't even see them anymore..."

Her expression changed when she realized that he had dumped everything back out. She looked at him, "Sundance?"

"No one else would," Jolt replied, "she enjoys 'organizing' for me whenever I'm not looking."

"She's just helping her father," she went back to putting things in their containers. He paused, watching her for a minute or two. He knew that her processor was on other things, but he wasn't sure when he'd get another moment alone with her without being on some random mission, and this was important to him...For several weeks he'd been thinking about this, and he was never quite sure when or even how to bring it up to her. But he needed to, and now was the best time.

He reached for her hand, watching as her movements stilled. She turned her hand up so their palms were together, fingers locking. Demona fixed her optics on his, "Jolt?"

"I..." He vented quietly when his resolve suddenly left him, "I want to..."

"To...?"

"...Speak with you."

"About?"

"I know it may not be the best time, but..." he stood up, holding on to her hand. She followed him, a confused look crossing her face when he let go and placed his hands on her hips instead. He lifted her and sat her down on their berth, "I want you to..." _Primus...this isn't working._

So he reached through their bond and pulled at her spark, taking all of his emotions and sending them to her. She tensed slightly but didn't recoil, "Jolt...you're..._another one_?"

"Yes," his voice was soft. Demona stared at him for a long moment before she lowered her gaze, falling back into her thoughts. Jolt squeezed her hips lightly when she faced him again with, "You're serious."

"Sundance wants a sibling," he said, "I want our family to grow."

She didn't respond, so he lifted a hand and lightly traced the scar on her horn, "Will you give me a sparkling?"

Demona reached up and placed her hands on his face. His spark tightened almost painfully when she didn't answer right away. He held on anyway, the hope that she would say yes burning through him.

* * *

><p><strong>Sundance and Jetfire. :) I think I would really enjoy listening to him tell the rest of that story...<strong>

**Those of you that have been waiting for some 'Jolt Juniors'...he's asked, we'll see how she answers later. **

**O.O OMG the little monsters go home tomorrow. YES!**

**Love to the readers!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Permission to leave base, Prime."

Demona stood straight-backed inside his office, Sundance resting on her arm. The little sparkling was absolutely worn out from days of flying. She was still having trouble with her landings, but she was getting better. It was the first time Prime had seen her so deep into recharge so early in the day. He smiled at his adopted family, "Why, Demona?"

"It's been too long since I've seen my family," Demona explained softly, "things seem to have calmed down here."

"How long will you be gone?"

"Not very long. It'll just be Sundance and I."

"And Jolt?"

"He's...staying here. he has lessons to catch up on."

He nodded, "You can go, but Demona..."

She focused her gaze on his. Prime's optics softened, "Be careful."

"Yes, Prime," she inclined her head then stepped out, making her way down the hall towards the hangar.

Once she was outside, she switched Sundance to her other arm and folded down, somehow arranging herself so that the sparkling was inside her alternate, curled up in the back seat. She was bigger now, so she took up the entire back seat with her body. Her tail was draped over the floor boards.

Demona took off, leaving the base behind.

* * *

><p>"Rex just called," Gears walked into the shop. She rolled her eyes, "that piece of crap Pinto broke down on him."<p>

She blinked when her oldest son jumped, hitting the raised hood of the pick up he had been working on. He scratched at the back of his head to ease the pain, and turned on her with a '_you're joking_' look on his face. He said, "Really? A Pinto?"

"Some bright freaking friends you have," Gears said, raising a brow, "he works in a shop. You'd think that he'd pick something up, like maybe Pintos are crap?"

"You don't need to be a mechanic to know that," he snorted, "who in the world is dumb enough..."

"Sweetie, it's Rex."

"Point made."

Gears walked over and leaned over to see his work, "I'm happy to see you haven't lost your touch, babe."

"I was taught by the best."

Her eyes softened. She reached up and brushed some dirt off his sleeve, "And I learned from your daddy."

They both froze, eyes widening when the snarl of a powerful engine reached them from outside. Seconds later, one of the garage doors was raising. Gears grinned real wide when a certain red Dodge Charger rolled inside. It parked in an open space, rose colored armor gleaming. Gears headed over before the car even stopped rolling, leaning down over the warm hood and spreading her arms over it, "Where in the world have you been, Dem?"

Pockets wiped his hands on his jeans and headed over. Her 'holoform' popped up beside Gears, arms crossed but dark eyes soft. The second his mom saw her, she nearly tackled her to the ground. She started griping, "What is it with you kids? No phone calls or visits or _anything_!"

"I've been searching the country for new arrivals," Demona explained, "We just got back from one a few days ago."

"They're keeping you two busy, huh?"

Gears stepped back, leaning against the Charger. Demona raised her gaze to Pockets and stepped forward. He smiled at her and hugged her, "Hey, sister. Long time no see."

"I know," she squeezed him lightly, "I've missed you all...when did you get back?"

"Yesterday," Pockets answered, "I'll be home for about a week. How long will you...?"

"A few days. Jolt doesn't want me gone long."

Gears grinned, "How's everything going between you two?"

"Well." She turned her attention back to Pockets, "Where's Alex?"

Pockets raised a hand to rub at the back of his neck while Gears' grin disappeared. Confusion filled Demona's face, "Is something wrong?"

Pockets fished around for some way to explain things to her. He knew the news would hurt her, but she had asked and he couldn't get around it. Luckily, they were saved when Demona seemed to forget, eyes going back to her own real body as her back door opened.

"Oh my..." Gears stared, wide-eyed as her grand-daughter spilled out ungracefully onto the floor, only she was about ten times the size she had been when she had last seen her, with brand new armor and a set of beautiful wings. The dragon was still the same rose red as her mother, and her horns were now longer, almost the same length as Demona's.

"Sundance?" She started.

The sparkling righted herself and smiled real big at them, "Mimi! Look! I got my wings!"

"She's _huge_," Pockets added, "when did she...?"

"A couple days ago," Demona answered as Sundance quickly came over and wrapped Gears up in a big dragon hug. Gears laughed, "Hey, baby!"

"Look!" Sundance repeated, stepping back real quick and spreading her wings so they could see, "daddy built them!"

"They're _gorgeous_," Gears said, reaching up to trace one of the long angled plates that made up a 'feather', "he did a very good job."

"I can fly now, too...I'm not good yet, but I'm getting better!"

"If you don't stop growing I'm going to stick you in a box," Pockets muttered, reaching up and running a hand down the side of her face. Sundance dropped her head and nosed him in the chest, "You're weird, Uncle. Why would you want to put me in a box?"

"So you'll stay the same size," he answered, "every time I see you, you're bigger."

Gears ran her fingers down the new plates of armor on Sundance's neck. There was more pieces now, so she could move easier, and they all seemed to shift effortlessly. She turned her attention back to her daughter, "Hey, Dem."

As usual, she didn't hesitate. "Yes?"

"Would you mind going down to Rex's to pick him up?"

"If you'll let Sundance stay with you."

"Deal," Gears turned back to the sparkling, "we got lots of catching up to do, huh?"

The little dragon beamed with pride, "I finally got Ironhide. I found his weak point, and I got 'em."

Gears laughed, "You'll have to tell me how here in a minute. Pockets, go with Dem and keep her company."

Demona's holoform died, and the passenger door swung open. Pockets patted Sundance on her side as he walked past and folded down inside. Gears led Sundance to the big rug on the 'house' side of the shop where the dragon laid down. Gears slowly lowered herself to the floor in front of her, "So tell me about the hunt, and don't leave out _any _details."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry it's late. <strong>

**Love to the readers. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

"What's wrong with Alex?"

Pockets stared out the window, watching the buildings pass by in a blur. Demona was going the speed limit, but things always seemed to go by faster than they should when he was riding with her. He turned his head and looked at her human form when she spoke the words. _No getting around it now._

"He's changed."

He felt her form tense all around him. She seemed to hesitate, like she wasn't sure that she wanted to hear more, "Changed how...?"

"He's..." Pockets paused, trying to put a response together in his head, "...hurting."

"...Inside?"

"Yeah."

Pockets pushed a hand through his hair, "He's shut off, sister. It's like he just shut down on everyone. He's getting into trouble at school, and he just won't talk to anyone."

He glanced back at her to see a look of pain on her face. She stopped at a stop sign not too different from the one he had yesterday when his brother had opened up to him, if only a little. She kept her hands on the wheel and eyes ahead, "Do you know why?"

_Because you left._ Pockets didn't know how to say it, so he just said, "He feels like he's been betrayed."

Her voice was soft and fragile like glass when she put the pieces together, "Betrayed by me."

He didn't answer, just watched. Her hands turned white as she clenched her fingers around the wheel, but then they loosened and the Charger rolled forward.

"I didn't want to leave," she started, "I wanted to stay, and Jolt had even agreed to stay as well if mother would allow it. Prime was concerned. An autobot had landed on earth and had become heavily damaged. They raced to find him, but they lost his signal. By the time they found him, he was offline. He called me back because he didn't want to risk losing anyone else, and as much as I wanted to remain here, I didn't want to see anyone else buried, either. I...tried to talk to him, but the moment he found out I was leaving, he wouldn't even look at me."

"So you knew."

"I didn't know that it had changed him," Demona turned on to Rex's street, "I should have come back a long time ago..."

"No one blames you."

"He does, and that's enough."

The rest of the ride to Rex's house was spent in silence. Demona raised a brow when they pulled up into his driveway. Rex was stretched out in his lawn chair, a frown on his face and shades on. He was completely dressed for work with a coke in one hand and a half-eaten corn dog in the other.

Standing over him was a tall, lean girl his age with thick, straight black hair tossed up in a loose pony tail. She had her hands on her hips and was giving him an intense lecture. What was really odd about her though, was the fact that she was standing outside in just her underwear and an old t-shirt.

Pockets caught the confused look that filled Demona's face and said, pointing at the seething female, "That's Rex's girlfriend. Her name is Shark."

"Why Shark?"

"Because she can beat the hell out of a full grown man with one arm. I've seen it...that is one female you _don't _wanna piss off," he paused when Rex suddenly reached a hand up and around her body to grab her ass. Without even pausing, she reached down and swatted him on the head with a rolled up magazine, "and she's the only one that can keep Rex in line. Most of the time."

Demona blinked, "I see he hasn't changed."

"Nope. Not Rex."

Her gaze fixed on Pockets when he rolled down the window and whistled. Both jumped, turning to look at him. Rex stared at them for a long moment before a huge grin spread across his face and he jumped up, "Demi! Girl, you're back!"

"C'mon, Rex," Pockets called, "sisters probably still tired from her trip down, so pick up the pace."

Rex sighed dramatically, getting up. He turned to Shark, "I was really looking forward to the climax of your _lovely _lecture, but work calls, baby..."

The black-haired woman wasn't impressed. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him, "You better get you're skinny ass walking or I'll beat the hell outta you."

His eyes brightened, "Really?"

She huffed and smacked him again, this time on the butt, "Be home at six."

"Mmm, yes ma'am," he purred as he started towards the Charger. Once settled in, he leaned forward and hugged Demona's holoform, "Gah I missed the hell outta you, Demi. It's so boring around the shop without you and that brat of yours."

Demona tensed slightly but didn't pull away. The seat belt slid over his body and locked when he leaned back. Demona faced forward and made a show of putting the Charger in drive and taking off from the curve.

"What'd you do to piss her off this time?" Pockets asked, returning his eyes to the window. Rex shrugged, "I really have no idea. Every time she opens her mouth, all I hear is blah-blah-gab-blabbity-blab."

Demona raised an eyebrow, "You _really _haven't changed."

He scowled, "What's that supposed to mean?"

She shook her head.

* * *

><p><strong>Demona's been informed or rather figured out what the problem is with Critter...don't know when she'll get around to talking to him about it.<strong>

**So there's Shark...and she seems just as unique as Rex is...can't wait for her to meet Gears and Jo, if I ever get around to it. You know, I have a friend nicknamed 'Battle Axe' because she used to beat the hell out of the neighborhood bullies when they picked on her brothers and sisters...just a random bit of information...**

**Might have another chapter up tonight.**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Once they returned to the shop, Pockets took over keeping Sundance busy by reading her a story out of a book, and Rex went to work. Gears, however, invited herself to sit down in Demona's passenger, looked her in the optic, and said, "Drive."

So, for the second time that day, Demona backed out of the shop and weaved her way out of the Junkyard. She pulled to a stop just outside the layers of cars and junk when Gears told her to, and turned her full attention to her adopted mother. Gears turned in the seat and started, "Don't think I didn't catch the way how you changed subjects when I brought up Jolt."

_I should have known this was coming, _Demona thought with a soft vent. She softened the seat so it conformed to Gears' body, causing the woman's body to loosen a little. Gears' expression softened, "What's going on between you two?"

"Nothing," Demona answered.

"Demona James, don't you lie to me."

Demona turned her optics, real and fake, outwards. She watched a bird as it arced down and perched on a crooked fence post. After a minute of trying to put her emotions into words, Gears asked, "Are you happy?"

"Yes," Demona answered truthfully, focusing her gaze back on the woman, "I love him with every piece of my spark, and he's done nothing but love me back. He makes sure Sundance and I are alright constantly. I'm never alone now, not truly."

"Then what's wrong?"

"He wants another sparkling."

Gears blinked. Demona let it sink in, falling quiet as she went back to watching the bird. It's feathers were ruffled, and it was singing a sweet tune. It reminded her of Sundance, even though the two were completely different.

"He wants another baby?" Gears finally reacted.

"Yes."

"And you don't?" she sounded a little confused this time.

"No, I would gladly bear him one, but..." She trailed off as she felt Jolt tug lightly on her spark, checking on her. He felt her emotions and sent a wave of love to her, calming them almost easily, "I won't risk losing it."

"You mean the decepticons."

"I had no choice with Sundance," Demona turned her gaze to Gears, "I had to make the bond and save her or she would have died hours after being born. I managed to hide her existence away from Megatron, but I don't know if I could do it again...I could lose them."

"So you told him no."

This time she didn't say anything.

"Dem...I understand, but...if you're going to have another, now might be your only chance for a long time. I know that you're afraid...but you're not alone anymore. I promise you that Jolt isn't going to let anything happen to you or your babies, and I don't think he'd ask if he hadn't thought it through first. You and Sundance are his entire world."

She reached over and closed her hand around Demona's, "You're a great mother, Dem, you should have a bigger family...I just hope I get to see our little Jolt-juniors before I'm old and cranky...Promise me you'll think about it?"

"I've nearly burned out my processor thinking over it," she said, "he wants a son."

Gears smiled, "Every daddy wants a little boy."

"I'll...talk to him about it when I get back."

"You'll make the right decision," Gears reached up and pushed her hair out of her face, "I know you will."

* * *

><p><strong>Not much to say. <strong>

**Love to the readers. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_This world already reeks of death. _The charred grass crackled beneath her feet. Red optics dropped down to the burnt remains of a human home. The other humans had left mere hours ago after gathering what the could of the children that had been caught in the hands of fate, the ones that had cried and screamed for their creators. She had heard them, they had led her off her original course. The shrieks of dying young activated old memories of the spark that burned new canyons through her.

She had arrived too late, and their screams had died as their fragile bodies suffered. _Always too late._

But she had waited anyway as sirens filled the night silence. She had waited, and watched as humans braved the flames and pulled out the broken bodies. "_It was arson_," they had told the distraught parents, "_they were murdered_."

_Earth is no different than Cybertron, soon it will be a hollow shell, a beautiful world made ugly, ravaged by hate and pain and jealousy._

She could remember now. She remembered a time when Cybertron's cities had been lit, when countless mechs and femmes had roamed their streets. She remembered graduating from the academy, alongside her closest friend and Prime himself, who had also befriended her at some point or another.

She remembered being young and full of hopes and dreams, living on a planet that ran on younglings like her. It had been beautiful.

She studied the remains of the house, forcing the memories back as the questions started coming. Why were they trying to save this planet? It was well on it's way to destruction long before the decepticons arrived. Just what did Demona and Prime see here? _There is no such thing as peace. Cybertron lived without fear because we believed in such a thing, and look at us now...taking refuge on an organic planet that doesn't even belong to us._

Her optics raised to the sky when she felt something nearby. Moments later a sharp whine filled the air and a scarred F-22 Raptor shot past, broken silver armor gleaming faintly beneath the moon. A snarl twisted her face plates, recognizing the energy signature immediately. _Starscream._

He was far from her favorite mech. He was a deceitful coward, worse than Megatron even. She'd been impressed when she heard that Demona had successfully disabled him, even moreso when she learned that the autobots had taken him prisoner and kept him contained all these years.

She turned her gaze towards the direction he had come from. Some where, very far from here, the autobot base stood. She knew it was simply swarming with able mechs by now...how the slag had he escaped? _Somethings wrong._

She cast one last look at the burn site before she folded down into her ground alternate. Dirt flew as she took off, racing after the escaping seeker.

* * *

><p><strong>Kinda depressing...a peek into the way how Paradox sees things. She <em>would<em> be the first one to realize something was off...The Reapers on the move, might lead up to some action here soon. **

**Sorry for the short chapters...I'll respond to reviews today. **

**Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

"You're back."

Demona turned her optics towards the doorway, focusing on her younger brother. It was dark outside now. They'd returned late because he had to serve a 'detention', and Pockets had errands to run for Gears on the way back.

He looked stronger than he had the last time she saw him. His body was growing naturally, but his legs were still too small. He sat in his wheel-chair, green optics dark...she'd never seen them that way before. Demona's spark tightened painfully in her chest, just now seeing how her absence had affected things. Beside her, Sundance stirred lightly in her recharge in reaction.

"Alex," she said softly, "how are you?"

"I'm fine," he rolled inside, passing her real form without a second glance. A sharp pain shot through her. She watched as he headed towards the 'house' side of the shop to hand a paper to Gears. Then he turned back around and went right out. Demona raised her holoform's optics to Gears when she felt the woman lay a hand on the hood of her real form. Gears sent her a saddened look, "I'm sorry, Dem."

Demona said nothing.

A few hours later, after she'd taken Rex home, listening to him brag and gripe about his 'girlfriend' the entire way, and made sure Sundance was settled on the carpet and deep in recharge, Demona said good night to her human family.

Instead of resting as well, she went back outside and transformed, raising her optics to the sky. She let her processor drift, going back to the very first memories she had on earth, when she first met these humans...even then, they had trusted her. Little Critter had loved her, despite everything she was. _This shouldn't have happened._

She shuttered her optics, finding little comfort and the cool night air. Her processor was worn, more than once now she'd wondered if she'd glitch soon. First, Jolt with wanting another sparkling, and now Critter...

She was drug out of her thoughts when someone asked, "Why did you come back?"

She almost jumped at the sudden sound, optics swinging down to focus on one of her sources of worry. Critter was settled in the same half broken lawn chair that he had been sitting in the first day she'd known him six years ago. He _still_ wasn't looking at her, narrowed optics turned elsewhere.

"To see my family," she answered softly after a long moment, "to see you."

"What's the point. You're just going to leave again."

"Alex..." She knelt beside him, giving him her full attention, "I did not abandon you...I never wanted to leave you."

"Then why did you?"

Her spark clenched at his tone. It wasn't cold or distant anymore, but broken. He kept on speaking, leaving no room for her to reply, "You weren't there when I needed you, like you promised. You were just gone...and there was no one...no one that could make the bad things go away."

She reached for him and wrapped her fingers carefully around his form. He tensed, and for a moment she thought that he would fight, but he turned his gaze back up to her, "I can't...get away from him. I can't...He's everywhere..."

"Who, Alex?"

"Skywarp."

Her frame tensed. Anger shot through her as she remembered the battles on Diego Garcia four years ago. The seekers had made a mess of NEST, and had brought down most of the human soldiers and had damaged almost every autobot. It was there Gears had received all of her scars and disabilities she suffered from today, and it was there Skywarp had taken Alex hostage.

"I see him every time I close my eyes," he went on, "you kept him away, but then you left, and it all came back...you just left, and you said you'd always be there."

She lifted him, "You know that I would never leave you willingly, Alex. Prime pulled me away because he needed me to help save lives...mechs were dying because he couldn't get to them in time, and he knew I could...I...I'm sorry...I did not know you were..."

"Just forget it," he turned away, "it doesn't matter. You're just going to leave again anyway. Put me down."

Without another word, she lowered him back down, but before she could set him on the ground, he let go of her and slipped down. She watched as he pulled himself back up into his wheel-chair. When he had trouble getting started, she gave him a very small push. Quietly, Demona said, "I love you, Alex."

But he was already around the shop and headed towards the house. Demona turned back to the sky. Jolt was tugging at her spark, trying to ease her emotions. He became worried when she didn't respond right away.

Her thoughts were far away and slow. She scrolled through their conversation time and time again, trying to put together some solution. Each time she came up blank, and she grew a little colder inside. One thing was for certain.

It was the only time he had let go first.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for late updates and late review-responses. <strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belong to me, Transformers does not.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Gears crossed her arms, leaning against her truck, "Are you okay?"

"I talked to Alex last night."

The woman took on a saddened expression, "How did that go?"

"Not well," Demona turned her optics down towards Sundance. She was in her natural form, sitting inside the shop. Her sparkling was curled up on her leg, nose tucked into a plate of her armor and optics half-shuttered. She was fighting recharge since she'd woken up early in the morning because of a nightmare. She was determined to stay awake for the rest of the day, and was refusing to leave Demona's side.

Gears pushed a hand through her thick red hair, "I was hoping to hear better...but I'm not surprised."

"I think..." Demona lowered a hand and ran her fingers down her young's spine, "...that he has been having nightmares."

"Yeah," Gears nodded, "sometimes he wakes up screaming, I sleep with the doors open now so I can get to him sooner."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Between keeping tabs on Jo and keeping Rex busy...I guess all of us are a bit too busy for our own good, with Alec and his schooling and you and you're life-saving. I just never had the chance to."

"I hate the way things are," Demona said softly, "we're all so far apart from each other. It feels as though things are collapsing all around us..."

Gears straightened and walked over. She leaned over Demona's leg opposite of Sundance and stared up at her, "Oh, Dem...do you remember the first battle, when we thought we'd lost you? And all those days spent, thinking that you, after finding you and loving you, had left us...Do you remember what I told you when you woke up?"

"I remember a good scolding on your part," Demona answered, "how could I forget? I thought you were going to beat me."

Gears grinned at her, "I was ready to...until you just thanked me. Out of the freaking blue, after I'd sat there and yelled at you, you just _thanked _me. Why did you?"

"Because you were the first one to believe in me, it was you who first saved me."

"That's right." The woman stood then climbed her way up Demona's armor to stretch out over her thigh on her back. She closed her green optics, "Please believe in us, Dem. I know things are bad right now, but no matter what, we're a family, and that's never going to change. Someday we'll all be together again. Who knows? Maybe you and Jolt and Sundance and your little Jolt-juniors can move out here when things calm down."

"You're really pushing for that sparkling, aren't you?" Demona sent her a look. Gears smiled innocently.

Unfortunately, the word 'sparkling' didn't escape Sundance, and the little dragon knew they weren't talking about her. She lifted her head and tilted it, "Momma, what sparkling?"

Demona turned her attention to the younger femme. There was a bright hope in Sundance's optics, all weariness gone. The smaller shifted, straightening up a little. She pushed, "What sparkling, momma? I know you're not talking about me!"

"Oops, guess you can't avoid it now..." Gears chimed in cheerfully.

_Fragging red headed woman..._Demona picked a branch out of Sundance's metal feathers, "Your father wants a sparkling-"

And just like that, Sundance's day was suddenly _wonderful_. She made that soft song-like hum she made when she was happy. She interrupted, "A sparkling? Like a brother or sister? I'm going to be a sister!"

"-But we're still not certain," Demona continued, "so you're not quite a-"

The singing grew, and the little dragon hopped down with a flutter of her wings. She moved away. Sundance tensed her wings like she was about to fly, but couldn't because they were surrounded by four walls. So she pranced circles instead, repeating the words over and over again. _Jolt wasn't joking when he said she wanted a sibling, _she thought. Sundance had never quite asked them, but she had felt her want for a brother or sister more than once. It usually happened when she was around the twins.

Demona watched, spark warming despite last night's conversation with Critter. She finished quietly, "-Sister, yet..."

"Now how could you say no to her?" Gears asked, "look at her, babe. When's the last time you saw her dance like that?"

Sundance bounced back over and leaped up, latching on to Demona's chest armor. She quickly climbed her way up to her shoulders. The sparkling dropped her head and nuzzled into Demona's throat cables, "I'm so happy, momma. When can I see it?"

_Don't have much of a choice now, do I? _Demona wrapped her fingers around her daughter's body and lifted her. Sundance wiggled a little, spreading her wings to balance. She seemed to glow, "Tell me, momma!"

Demona hesitated. The fear of loosing her young coursing through her still. Yet the words of her adopted mother wrapped around her spark and squeezed, reminding her that she was far from being alone. _Shes right...Jolt wouldn't ask if he hadn't thought it through first..._

As if to prove it, Jolt chose that moment to check on her, reaching through and tugging lovingly at her spark. She felt him become distracted for a moment but he came right back, and with questions, _'What are you two doing over there? Sundance hasn't been this happy since the first time she successfully jumped Ironhide...'_

In front of her, Sundance was getting impatient. She vented, "_Momma!_"

_Primus, _she thought tiredly. Demona shot a half-hearted glare down at Gears who was whistling, still playing the innocent one in the mix, "You _knew_ this would happen."

"Nah," the woman answered, "I had _no _idea..."

"Is it a mech or a femme?" Sundance kept at it, pulling her wings in, "you have to tell me _something_!"

_'Demona...?' _Jolt tugged at her again. Demona pulled back with a soft vent, _'She's happy because she found out that she's going to be a sister...'_

_'A sister?' _She tried not to snort at the clueless, awkward tone. She counted the seconds in her processor before it finally dawned on him just _what _she was talking about. A flood of warm emotions came through and wrapped around her tightly. He whispered, _'A sparkling?'_

Demona let Sundance squeeze out of her hands to settled back on her shoulder, humming quietly. She reached back through the bond and answered him with her own round of feelings, including her fears. He made a silent promise that he would protect them until his spark ran cold and continued to surround her like a warm blanket. Protected, safe.

There was no hesitation this time. Her spark took over her processor before she could back out. She answered, _'Yes, Jolt.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, if you see mistakes I'm sorry. I don't have a beta reader(and I don't want one) and I don't get around to writing these until early morning or late evening, so I'm sorry. I can't catch everything in every chapter, but I do try, so if you see anything just bear with me. I've been getting remarks on it lately, and, again, I'm sorry. I'm usually tired when I do these and this story is thoroughly kicking my ass so far...I'm very stressed out over getting it done, and top it all off with college. <strong>

**Anyway, after a depressing-ish opening, Gears and Sundance kinda ganged up on her until she gave Jolt an answer. Kinda corny, but oh well. It's 1:20 AM and I've been listening to 80's cartoons for the past hour. Sorry, this is all you get.**

**And I got like fifteen reviews one right after another today...I'll get around to those tomorrow, when my brain isn't sludge.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

It was late into the next day before the seeker dropped down to the earth in the heart of an abandoned human factory. He transformed on his way to the ground, a ruthless rush of twisting silver metals that creaked and screeched from all of his wounds and scars. He landed with a scowl, dropping a hand to completely pull off a piece of armor on his leg that was nearly useless it was so damaged. Seconds after he arrived, another appeared, although he shifted forms more gracefully, and said with dark amusement, "Our brother returns..."

The third and final of the trine arrived. He said nothing and kept his distance from the silver mech who snarled, "Without your help, _Skywarp_. What news of our _great leader_?"

He spat the words out like a curse. The one designated Thundercracker spoke up, "Still suffering from his injuries. Scalpel has been unable to treat the wounds left from Egypt."

"That femme nearly tore him in half," Skywarp added almost thoughtfully, "if she had not been distracted, she would have killed him. She was too strong for Megatron..."

"Megatron has grown weak, he is not fit to lead the decepticons," Starscream continued, "it is time to...relieve him of his title."

"How?"

"We'll start by destroying the femme," his optics seemed to brighten, glowing a fierce crimson, "Demona will fall."

With that, he pushed off into the air and twisted, forming back into his Raptor alternate. He seemed to hesitate in the air as the other two followed. Once they were all off the ground, he lead the trinity away at a reckless speed.

Paradox tensed in the shadows, visor tinting red as her spark pulsed with anger. She had watched, safe from sight, and listened. The second that fragging seeker had mentioned Demona, her cold spark had tightened almost painfully in her chest, recognizing the name of it's lost sparkling from a past life. The bond wasn't there anymore. All that remained was a huge gap that split Paradox from whatever remained of Angelus, a gap she had been able to ignore with her nonstop hunting. But she knew it now, and she could no longer ignore the knowledge, that her young was alive and well.

Angelus had survived, somewhere deep inside, and was growing stronger everyday with that same knowledge. Yes, the bond was gone, but she remembered holding her creation for the first and last time, and praying to Primus that she would be nothing like Megatron intended her to be.

_I won't lose her again. _Paradox slipped out of the darkness and glided through her transformation sequence. Tires hit the broken concrete and she tore away, pushing her frame as hard as she could. She left the seekers to their plotting and went rushing back in the direction of the autobot base.

* * *

><p><strong>And there we go with Starscream plotting to take over the decepticons...it's about time. I'm surprised it didn't happen in any of the movies, but it's not the only thing Bay *cough, cough*-fucked-*cough, cough* I mean messed up. <strong>

**I call bullshit-Demona's kicked Starscream's ass how many times now? Riiight...**

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed. Sorry it's short, should have another up late afternoon or evening. Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Sundance was on the carpeted area in front of the TV, resting in coils of rose red armor and silver blade-like feathers. Her nose peeked out of the top of the pile, and her red optics were fixed on the TV in complete concentration. Whenever the movie hit a musical scene, her tail would tap out the rhythm. She never missed a beat, because she had seen the movie about twenty times.

Gears was sitting beside the not-so-little dragon, leaning against her warm plates of armor for support as she organized a box of tools. Used to she could sit down on the floor without having to lean on anything, but her body was still suffering damage from her fight with Skywarp. It saddened Demona to see her that way, but she knew that Gears was okay. A soft look had taken over her scarred face when she first sat down with Sundance, ignoring the stress she was putting herself through in order to spend time with the sparkling.

Demona was resting in her alternate form a short distance away, slipping in and out of recharge. She was floating on the edge of unconsciousness, mostly at peace. Jolt was free at the moment and was sending her feelings and expressions through the bond. He still had her spark wrapped up in warmth and love, which was the reason why she was so at ease...

He wasn't saying anything, but she could tell he was overjoyed now that she had given him the answer he'd been wanting to hear. Demona honestly didn't know who was more excited-her young or her mate.

As peaceful as it was to be sandwiched between his spark and Sundance's, and having soft emotions sent to her constantly from both sides, there was something wrong.

Demona still needed to speak to Critter. She wanted to, but hadn't had the chance. He left early for school, and when he came home he went straight to the house, and she couldn't quite fit her ground alternate or her real form into it. It hurt her deeply, but she wouldn't force him to do anything. She loved him too much to do that.

_I can wait, _she thought softly, _I'll wait for as long as it takes..._

"I says," a familiar voice echoed in the shop when Rex stepped inside with Pockets, "how many times are you going to watch that stupid movie?"

Demona felt her place of peace slipping away with their entrance. She tried to hold on to it, because it had been so long since she'd last found it, and managed to for another minute or so.

Sundance uncoiled half her body with a frustrated vent and sent the yellow-haired human a sharp look, "It's not stupid!"

"It's about birds!" He argued, "what is so freaking great about birds!"

"You're dumb, Uncle Rex!" Sundance mumbled, turning back to her show. Rex just stared, blinking at her while Pockets laughed.

Gears grinned and patted the sparkling on one of her claws, "You tell 'em, baby."

Demona was about to fall back into her special place again when a long skinny hand slapped down loudly on her hood, successfully tearing her away from her mech and her sparkling. She jumped slightly, earning a laugh from Rex.

"Good mornin', Demi!"

"I can still step on you, boy," Demona said out loud, although her voice was soft, "don't make me break our oath of not harming a human..."

"Damn girl, you sound like you're half asleep!"

"Leave momma alone," Sundance went off again, "she's talking to daddy."

Rex waggled his eyebrows, "Is she now? What are you two talkin' about, Demi?"

_Primus, please go the frag away..._She rolled back when Rex turned to lean against her. He couldn't catch himself in time and ended up landing on his skinny organic aft. In the back, by the truck they were working on, Pockets laughed harder.

Gears ordered, although her voice was cracking with her own laughter, "Get your butt to work, Rex. I'm not paying you to harass my girls."

"Alright, fine," Rex said with a sigh. He stood up and brushed himself off. Demona watched him with her hidden optics as he walked around her frame and headed towards Pockets who was still trying to contain his amusement.

Jolt tugged at her in an attempt to get her attention again. She almost gave in until a loud '_POP_' followed by a small explosion had her raised on her axles and halfway transformed to protect her family. Gears grabbed Sundance and the boys in the corner dove for cover.

"What the freaking hell happened!" Gears shouted, swinging wide eyes back towards Pockets and Rex, "What the hell are you two doing!"

"All I did was touch the damn thing!" Rex shot back, "What the friggin' hell!"

Sundance shook lightly, intakes rapid, "Momma! What was that?"

"That," Pockets started, sending a frozen glare at his friend, "was Rex being a moron."

Demona reversed her routines and settled back down in her Charger form, letting out a sharp vent of annoyance as things slowly began to calm down.

_'What in Primus' name just happened?' _Jolt demanded, pulling at her spark a little harder than before. Demona remained tense, spark still spinning with the fear of her family being hurt. She shut off her defensive routines and pulled back, _'Rex.'_

That was all he needed to hear. His worry eased and he poured soft emotions into her again, wrapping himself tightly around her spark. He continued to talk to her, although he used expressions to do it. He tried to help her back to her peaceful place. She sunk down on her wheels and let him.

* * *

><p><strong>Anyone who guesses what Sundance was watching gets a free piece of candy...<strong>

**A little bit of fun family time since it's been kind of depressing lately what with Alex and stuff. I really can't wait to stick the J-juniors in there...we're talking about LOADS of fun. :) And how Rex managed to make something explode inside a dead truck with one touch is beyond me...but hey, it's Rex. Enough said. **

**Love to the readers...**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_'We're picking up another signal. I need you to come back, Demona.' _

The light pull on her spark drew her attention away from watching Gears and Rex argue. She had been paying close attention in case Gears snapped and jumped on his aft for not listening. The last thing Demona needed was a human fight on her hands, especially one among her family.

Sundance had finally settled into recharge and was curled up in a tight ball on top of her roof, tail hanging down. Pockets had retired to the house to make sure Critter was doing his homework. And Gears and Rex were almost at each others throats in the shop, over a vacation of all things.

She had been completely focused on them, awake and aware of everything. Jolt hadn't let go of her, although he was working with Ratchet now and was almost distant. The sudden contact from Prime was unexpected and she almost jumped in reaction. It took her a moment, but she pulled back, _'How long?'_

_'Soon, ETA forty-eight hours. We haven't pinned a landing site yet, and we have been unable to make contact.' _He sounded tired, like he'd just finished throwing Mudflap and Skidz back into the brig. Demona sent him a wave of strength. He returned it with a squeeze of gratitude, _'I need you back before evening.'_

_'Understood.'_

She tensed her frame slightly when the comments turned into shouts. She activated her holoform and posted herself between them, "What the slag are you two yelling about?"

"Rex here has the great idea to go on a road trip, by _himself_, and we just accepted two new projects that we haven't even started yet, not to mention we _still _haven't finished Jo's truck!" Gears snapped.

Rex huffed and waved his arms around, "I'm perfectly fine on my own, and you've been fixing cars by yourself way longer than I have!"

"In case you haven't noticed, _Rex,_ I'm half blind! My hands don't exactly work right anymore after I broke them tearing a decepticon's ass apart!"

"Well I can't help that! I have to go!"

"Why?" Gears asked, "Why the hell are you just taking off!"

Demona fixed her gaze on him, catching the painful strain in his tone, "Rex, what's wrong?"

"I...its my dad."

"Your dad...?" The anger left Gears' tone, replaced by confusion, "but I thought..."

"Yeah, he got drunk and took off when I was a brat," he crossed his arms and leaned against Demona's real form. This time she didn't move away. He glared down at the floor, "All I remember is a beating from him every night until he just left, but for some shit-crazy reason, mom loved the hell out of him. We got a phone call from some cousin I didn't know existed. That bastards dead now...since mom isn't around anymore, I thought I'd go to the funeral for her."

"...Rex, why didn't you just tell me?"

"You know me, Misses James, I'm not into the whole 'sharing and caring' deal...not really my style."

Gears sighed, also leaning against Demona's true form. The holoform flickered and faded. The woman ran a hand down her armor, faded green optics turning down to focus on it like she was studying the scars there. She finally said, "How long?"

"A few days," he said, "I'll be back in less than a week. Think you can hold on to things until then? You got Big Foot now."

Gears nodded slowly, "Just be careful, kid."

"After being abducted by giant alien triangles and being stranded in Egypt for three days, I think I got careful down."

She sent him a sharp look but didn't say anything else. Demona chose that moment to speak, making them both jump, "Prime wants me to return to base today."

Gears pushed a hand through her hair with a sigh, "Already? You've just been here a few days."

"I know," Demona said softly, "I was hoping I could stay longer and fix things with Alex..."

"But orders are orders, right?"

"...Yes."

"I'll go get Pockets-I'm guessing Big Boss wants you there now, huh?" Rex stood up, tone returning to normal. She didn't answer and he didn't wait for one. He was out the door.

"You know," Gears started, "I'll never understand why God gave the lives he did to you kids."

Demona thought through her words carefully before she replied. "What do you mean?"

"My husband dying before Alec got to know him...Alex's dad taking off and leaving the moment he found out I was pregnant...Jo with one parent dead and the other fading away...Rex with both dead, and you with a mean ass father and a mother you've never even known. It's like you five got the most rotten deal. And you're all such awesome kids...I love the hell out of you..."

"Maybe it's because he knew we would find you," Demona answered quietly, "I think you've become a mother to all of us, even Jo."

Gears blinked and stared at her for a minute, before slowly laying down over her hood. Gears rested on her side, staring at the spread wings on the wall opposite of them, "You'll always be my daughter, Dem."

Demona said nothing, processor turning elsewhere. The conversation had brought up a talk she had shared with a certain white saboteur four years ago, once they'd returned from the battle in Egypt. She hadn't seen or heard from Paradox since. But the femme still managed to confuse the slag out of her.

Was it even possible...? She had seen her femme creator die, she had seen the light leave her optics as Megatron's claws dug deep into her chest and pierced through her spark. It was her first memory, and one of the clearest.

But she had seen the look in her optics when she had finally told her story. It was a look of agony, not the kind that burned and twisted rapidly inside, but the slow rot of one's own spark as they sunk deeper and deeper into a canyon so wide and black it made the pit seem heavenly. The kind of pain one carried for their entire existence, the kind that slowly drove a mech insane.

Demona had seen it. She had never felt such a deep and shattering hurt, but she knew what it was when she saw it. Beneath all of her slaying and hate and anger, Paradox harbored an impossibly deep pain.

Demona was pulled from her thoughts when Gears tapped on her hood and asked, "Dem? What's wrong?"

"We need to go," Demona answered. She would eventually tell Gears about Paradox, but not today. Not until she figured things out herself. She added, "Prime wants us back on base before the moon rises."

At that moment, Pockets walked inside. He looked tired and sad, and he walked over and ran a hand over her hood, "Rex said you were leaving."

"You know I would stay if I could."

"I know, sister."

Gears slid off and walked over to Sundance, rousing her with a shake. Sundance tensed, onlined one optic to see who had dared to touch her, saw it was Gears, and relaxed. She yawned, "Is it time to go, momma?"

"Yes, young one," Demona opened her back door when the dragon dropped down in a pile of lazy sparkling. She began to hum when Gears tackled her with hugs and kisses. When Pockets got to her, Sundance was giggling. She pressed her face into his chest and told him good bye. Pockets ran a hand down her horn and squeezed her gently with one arm.

Sundance climbed up into the back seats, settling again when she was comfortable and quickly falling back into recharge. Pockets lifted her tail, which she'd left hanging out, and laid it inside. Demona shut her door slowly so he had time to pull his hands back.

She activated her holoform long enough to be hugged by her family before she backed out of the shop and went on her way. She tugged at her bond with Prime and Jolt to let them know she was on her way.

* * *

><p><strong>You know, it really bugs me that this one isn't as light or funny as Dear Sister...I'm hoping things will get better later. <strong>

**Love to the readers, I hope you guys enjoy...**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Sundance was wide awake when they arrived at base.

She was almost bouncing in the seat, and the second Demona rolled to a stop and popped open her door, the dragon was out. Sundance went bounding towards Prime, who was standing inside the hangar and speaking to Jazz. Both mechs looked down and smiled at the sparkling when she stood up on her back legs and opened her arms for Prime, "Hi, Optimus! Hi, Jazz!"

Demona transformed. She made her way over, taking her time. Jolt wasn't there like he usually was when she came back from visiting her family, which meant he was already in recharge or Ratchet was keeping him in the med bay for an extra long lesson or lecture. The first seemed most likely, since the mech was known for his ability to sneak a nap in when he wasn't tired at all.

So she fixed her attention on her adopted mech creator as he bent and lifted her daughter. Sundance sang happily when he straightened and brought her close to his chest. Jazz reached over to run a finger down her back, "You sure are growin', lil miss."

He grinned when she jumped up and grabbed his finger with a little growl, "Hey, my name ain't Ironhide."

Sundance laughed, "You should have seen the look on his face when I got him!"

"I wish I had."

Prime raised his soft blue optics to Demona, "How was your visit?"

"Well." Her tone wasn't convincing, and he caught it.

He placed a hand on her shoulder when she joined them, "Is something wrong?"

_If only you knew. _Demona vented softly, "Alex is...different."

Jazz focused his attention on her, "Like what kinda different?"

"He's convinced that I abandoned him," Demona lowered her optics to Sundance when she climbed out of Prime's hand and started up his chest armor to rest on his shoulder. She finished, "Gears told me that he's been having nightmares about being taken by Skywarp...he's almost completely closed himself off to everyone. He wouldn't speak to me."

Prime's expression saddened, "I'm sorry, Demona."

"Things will get better..." She trailed off when Sundance nosed his throat cables then jumped back to her shoulder.

Sundance wrapped her tail around the back of Demona's neck, "Momma, where's daddy?"

Jazz let out a sound that was close to a snort, "He's sleepin'."

"I thought so," Demona said with a small smile. Sundance grinned, "Lets go wake 'em up!"

Demona took her in her hands so she wouldn't try to jump off and leave her behind. She turned her attention to Optimus, "When do you want us to leave?"

"Early tomorrow," he answered, gaze gentling, "get some rest."

She inclined her head towards them and started off. Sundance was bouncing in her hands the entire way to their quarters, and nearly fell off more than once. Once they were inside their room and both had set their optics on Jolt's still form on the berth, she let Sundance down.

Demona stood back and watched as their sparkling shot across the floor and sprung up to the berth, landing on his chest with a playful growl. Sundance locked her claws down around a plate of his armor before his body gave a jump. His optics flickered on, startled. Sundance sat down and wrapped her tail around her body, "We're home, daddy!"

He just stared at her for a moment, optics softening when she dropped her head and nosed his armor. Sundance started to tell him all about her visit with her 'mimi' and 'uncles'. Jolt sat up, shifting her to his hands, and listened.

Demona walked further inside and started to pick up whatever mess he'd forgotten to take care of. She divided her attention, half listening to Sundance.

"...And then Uncle Rex made the whole truck blow up! Smoke and fire and everything!" She was saying, standing up and spreading her arms and wings to exaggerate her story even further.

Jolt sent Demona a worried look, "Is that what really happened?"

Demona vented softly, "Of course not...she's just been listening to too many of Jetfire's stories."

Sundance squinted at her, "Have not, momma!"

Demona straightened again and settled beside him on the berth, "It was just a small accident, one that was taken care of before we left."

"I see..."

They both turned back to Sundance when she started up again. Demona smiled softly as the dragon sunk deep into her story telling. She was definitely spending too much time with Jetfire, if this was any indication...but that was okay. _Jetfire's better than those pit-spawned twins._

* * *

><p><strong>Kinda lame in-between chapter...sorry, guys. Been gone all day.<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. TRansformers does not.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

"When can I come with you?" Sundance asked, stretched out on her back. Her optics were turned up towards the ceiling, studying the lines. The end of her tail was waving back and forth like it did when she was deep in thought.

Jolt answered without looking up from his tools, "Not today."

She vented, "Then _when_?"

"Never."

Sundance rolled onto her belly and sent him a narrow-eyed look. Her mother was gone, meeting with Prime to get the details and a location. Her father was prepping for the both of them.

She repeated, "What do you mean, 'never'?"

He made a gesture with a hand, "I mean never."

Sundance crouched, front half on the ground and rear end in the air. She stretched out her claws, pulled back, and jumped. She locked her claws into his armor to keep from falling off when she landed on his back, and hopped up to his shoulder. Sundance leaned over and poked his face with her nose, "I'm not a baby anymore!"

He seemed to forget what he was doing and closed his hands around her, pulling her off his shoulder. Jolt held her gently, like she was the most precious thing in the world, and said softly, "You'll always be my sparkling, no matter how much you grow."

Sundance just stared, all the frustration leaving her. She leaned forward and touched her cheek to his, "I love you."

"And I love you," he added, tone never changing. Sundance hummed quietly, "When do I get to see 'em?"

His look turned confused, "See who?"

"My brother or sister," she said, "Momma was talking about it at Mimi's."

She curled against his chest plates when he brought her to his body, "He's not here, yet."

"So I'll have a brother?"

"Maybe." He shifted her to one hand to continue organizing supplies, "now, pay close attention...I've got a little mission I want you to do."

She straightened up with attention immediately, and whispered like it was some big secret, "What kinda mission?"

"The target is Ratchet. I want you to help 'organize' his tools..."

Sundance listened intently as he went into details, telling her _exactly_ what he wanted her to do. All in all, it was more than just 'organizing', and as he told her the plan, she started bouncing, with a huge grin on her face.

Sometime later, the door slid open to reveal Demona, who took one look at the scene and crossed her arms with a suspicious look, "What are you up to?"

Jolt sent her an innocent look. Sundance sprung out of his hands and glided to her mother, clinging to her chest armor. She nuzzled into the warm, familiar armor, "Hi, momma!"

She poked her head over Demona's shoulder to see Prime standing behind her, although he was giving her some space. She smiled at him.

Demona raised a hand to cover Sundance protectively in case she fell, and fixed her gaze on Jolt, "Are you ready?"

"Yes," he answered, pushing the last container into it's place on the shelf. He stood and joined her, slipping his fingers between her's. Sundance smiled at them and jumped over Demona's shoulder to land in Prime's hands. She settled. Demona ran a finger down her back, "Don't start any trouble, Sundance."

The larger femme's optics narrowed slightly when father and daughter shared a glance. Prime seemed to catch it too, and mentally prepared himself for for the next few days. Whenever they left Sundance in his charge, he usually didn't have time or energy for anything else. He spent most of the day just hunting the little dragon down. He never grew angry though, he loved the sparkling. She had managed to weasel her way into everyone's spark, it seemed, even Ironhide's.

"We'll report as soon as we reach the landing site," Demona promised.

"Watch yourselves," Prime warned, "decepticon activity has started to rise."

She inclined her head and walked down the long hall, Jolt at her side. When they were out of Prime's range, Demona sent him a look, "What ideas did you plant in her head?"

"Nothing she can't handle..."

Demona vented softly, "I'm not worried about _her, _I'm worried about the poor_ mechs_ that will be her _target_."

"Ratchet can handle it. He's had both sets of twins to deal with after all..."

"_Ratchet_?" She vented again, this time a little more sharply. She couldn't see it, but she could feel through the bond that her mech was grinning inside. He squeezed her hand, changing the subject like he just _knew _he was about to get in trouble with her, "We need to talk."

"About the sparkling." Her tone had changed again, much softer this time.

Again, he squeezed her fingers, "What made you change your mind?"

She sent him a smile, "I listened to my spark instead of my processor."

Even if it wasn't the whole truth, it was still close to it. Gears had played a big part in it with her 'talks', which always seemed to change the way how Demona thought after sitting through one, and Sundance with her excitement at the mere mention of a brother or sister as well.

The stepped outside. Demona faced him, "We'll speak more about it once we return."

He nodded and let go of her hand as she stepped back. He watched her shift forms in a liquid-smooth motion, _still _captivated by her grace, then followed. He let her lead, and followed faithfully.

* * *

><p><strong>Cute daughter-daddy moment. :) Can't wait to see how Ratchet's going to react to Sundance's 'help'. <strong>

**Sorry the POV kinda jumps everywhere, my brains in the clouds today. This is probably the only update you'll get for a while, sorry. I hope it makes up for the lameness of the last one..**

**Anyway, love to my readers!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

_'Ironhide-'_

_'She's not here, Optimus.'_

Prime vented tiredly, walking down the hall. He spared enough of his attention to avoid stepping on humans and running into mechs. The rest of his processor was focused solely on finding the sparkling that had been entrusted to his care. The very moment Sundance's creators had left the territory, she had scaled down his back armor so fast he hadn't a chance to react. She had hit the floor and taken off, turned the corner and disappeared. _I carry the Matrix of Leadership, _he thought, _I have led mechs into battle, have grieved over those lost and seen Cybertron burn..._

_...And I cannot even keep up with one sparkling..._He headed towards the hangar next, where Jetfire was no doubt still deep in recharge. Perhaps, just _maybe, _she was there. She adored Jetfire, and would sit there for hours simply listening to him tell his old stories. The big mech had a soft spot in his spark for her, as well, and was always ready for her company.

He took one step inside and scanned his optics over the building, searching for that certain bundle of rose red armor. But she wasn't _there_, either. He even checked above, scanning over the lighting and the rafters. She often found herself up there. Once Gears had made the comment; _"That baby is just hard-wired to find trouble." _

He'd agreed with the human the moment the words left her.

_She's not here, either, _he mused as he passed another favorite room of her's. Just _where_ was that sparkling? His optics fell upon Ratchet's med bay and, without a thought, he turned towards it.

The subject of his worrying was curled up on one of the berths, bright red optics fixing on him as soon as he entered. Sundance chirped, "Hi Optimus."

He tried to be stern, but she shot him that wide-eyed innocent look and he felt his resolve crack. It broke completely when she raised her head and smiled at him. He put his hands on his hips, "What are you doing in here?"

She shrugged, "I just wanted to see Ratchet."

"He's..." Prime trailed off when Jazz exclaimed over the public communications link, _'Decepticon signal headin' straight for base!'_

Sundance didn't object when he scooped her up in his hands and exited the med bay. He followed the rush of autobots and humans. Sundance settled in his palm and remained quiet.

* * *

><p>"There's nothing here." Jolt stared down into the hole, scanning through the smoke for their new arrival. It was empty. No life, not even flakes of armor or alloys that usually marked a landing site.<p>

Demona was settled beside him, still folded down into her alternate to avoid a fight. She'd learned a long time ago that many of the autobots didn't react well to anything that looked like a decepticon. She stayed in her Charger form until Jolt could explain that she was one of them. Most of the time she didn't transform at all.

But when she heard the confusion in his tone, she rolled forward a few feet and shifted forms. She knelt in the dirt and stared down into the pit, red optics dim but still casting a glow in the darkness. They'd been on the road for hours. It was dark now, and they were both tired.

"This was a smooth landing," Demona concluded. She lowered a hand to touch the earth, "there's no damage at all...whoever this was just stood up and walked off."

"Then where..." Jolt cut himself off when the unmistakable sound of a transformation reached them from behind. Both spun around to face the stranger, optics widening.

_It's a...femme. _Demona took in the sleek black armor, the feminine shape and the grace she radiated, even while standing still. She was a short femme, smaller than Demona, but she was lean and beautiful, with cold, fierce blue optics. One of her hands was reshaped into a blaster and was pointed at Demona's spark.

Stamped proudly on the femme's chest was the autobot badge in bright green. She said, voice as frozen as her gaze, "I've been away for too long if Prime is letting decepticons into the ranks. A mistake on his part, one that I will gladly fix."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for a really late update. I've been back and forth for the past few days and I have a new baby to take care of here(a animal, not a real human baby), so I've been spending time getting her set up in the house. <strong>

**This femme is a new OC, who will have ties to the 'Angelus' part of Paradox. I wasn't quite sure if I should bring her in yet...I was going to slap Elita 1 in there, but I don't know shit about her character so that would've been awkward. **

**This story is still kicking my ass...please guys, if this story starts sounding retarded, let me know...**

**Anyway, I'll answer reviews later today. I have to go get ready to go somewhere so I don't have the time to do it now...**

**Love to the readers, and for those of you who were guessing what movie Sundance was watching at Gears' shop, it was Rio. :) **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Before her processor could even catch up to the femme's words, Jolt was standing in front of her, beautiful electric blue optics cold and fists clenched. She could feel the core-shattering instinct to protect through the bond. He was willing to fight, autobot or not, if it came down to it.

"Move, kid," the femme ordered, "or I'll knock you flat on your aft."

"No."

Demona slowly stood up, raising a hand to rest against his back. His door wings tensed when she touched his armor. He growled, "She is an autobot warrior, and is one of Prime's most trusted soldiers."

"'Lying is a sin'," she never changed, straight-backed with her weapon raised, "_no one _is stupid enough to trust a _decepticon._ Now get the _slag_ out of my way."

When he refused to move, she shrugged, "You asked for it, boy."

Demona moved. Jolt tried to stop her but she ducked past his hands and posted herself in front of him. The act seemed to stun the femme, her ice-like optics widened and her body tensed slightly. Demona started, keeping her tone even, "What is your designation?"

"No decepticon is worthy to speak the name of an autobot," she snarled.

"Good thing I'm not a decepticon."

"You look like one."

"I am Demona, this is Jolt. Prime sent us to bring you back to base."

The barrel of the blaster lit with a pale blue glow. The femme kept her weapon aimed at Demona, "I don't believe you."

"Fine," Demona let the kindness leave her gaze, making her optics just as cold, "but if you hit Jolt and damage him, I will _give _you a reason to fear me."

"Threats mean nothing to me."

Demona's defense routines kicked on as her spark exploded with rage, overcome with the same need to protect as Jolt. The instincts made from their bonding roared in her processor and spark. She lowered her voice, voice losing any emotion, "That wasn't a threat. It was a _promise_."

The femme fell quiet, considering her. Demona continued before Jolt could cut in or yank her back behind his body, "_Don't _harm my mate."

She squinted at Demona, the tension leaving her body gradually. She seemed to lose focus on attacking and fall deep into thought instead, optics trained on the larger of the two. Slowly, she repeated, "Your..._mate_..."

Demona said nothing. She stood beside her mech, claw blades screaming to be deployed. This one was unpredictable, much like Paradox. She was experienced, dangerous, and agile. She _had _caught the two of them completely unprepared, after all.

The femme kept staring until the plates of armor forming her blaster broke and folded back into her arm, "You're...different."

"I am no decepticon," Demona repeated, "I never will be."

At the same time, Jolt said, "She is an _autobot._"

"You shouldn't trust so easily, kid, it'll get you killed," she warned.

"I trust her with my life. Now," he took hold of Demona's elbow, keeping his fingers loose even though the rest of his frame was tense. His tone was still defensive, warning the femme right back, "if you're done threatening my femme, we should return to base."

His attention turned to Demona, leaving no room for argument, "Transform. You're up front."

Demona squeezed his spark through their bond and folded down. She idled patiently as he asked the femme for her name.

"My designation is Ghost," she answered.

Jolt instructed her to find an appropriate alternate and waited until she took it's form before he transformed. Demona rolled back enough to touch his body before she pulled out and started towards home. Jolt took the place directly behind her, determined to be a shield between them in case this 'Ghost' changed her mind.

The way back seemed ridiculously long to her. She kept a constant speed. The atmosphere around the three of them remained tense the entire way, and she knew in her spark that Ghost did not trust her, perhaps not even Jolt. No words were spoken.

When they finally returned to base, Ghost passed the two of them and glided through her transformation to meet Prime. He seemed to recognize her, optics widening when the last plates of her black armor fell into place. Demona watched for just a moment as she greeted him by his full designation. Then Jolt moved around her and rolled out of the hangar and towards the actual base.

Demona cast one last hidden look at Ghost, finding those frozen optics on her, before she followed.

* * *

><p><strong>Reviews, reviews, reviews...I'm falling behind again on responding to mentioned reviews...<strong>**Things will start picking up now that Ghost is here. She seems like a bitch, but really she's not...just has some serious trust issues. Hopefully there will be some action and then things will relax again...Anyway, it's not the best but I hope you enjoy it. **

**Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

"This isn't working."

Ratchet turned his gaze to his student when the younger mech entered the med bay. His optics narrowed when he sensed the tension in Jolt. Wheeljack trailed off from whatever he had been saying and also focused on the youngling.

"What isn't working?" Ratchet started, lost between being frustrated and concerned. Frustrated, because Wheeljack had finally made his way back into the bay to check the progress of his repairs only to be interrupted before he could even begin. Concerned, because young Jolt was obviously very, very stressed. Ratchet had never seen his apprentice this way before.

"These 'search and rescues' are putting her in danger," Jolt answered. Immediately, Ratchet knew who 'her' was, he felt a wave of understanding. He had just been about to reach for his tools, organized neatly on the table, but now he turned and leaned against it with his arms crossed over his chest. Although he knew, he said the name anyway, "Demona?"

"This Ghost-" Ratchet's optics widened, but Jolt didn't catch it, "-nearly _shot_ her in the spark and was convinced that she was an enemy."

"'Ghost'?" Ratchet repeated, "_She's_ the new arrival?"

"You know her?" Jolt's voice returned to his usual calm, soft tone, even if it was only for a moment. His optics were still bright with anger, "Who the slag is she?"

"An elite warrior," Ratchet explained, "she led a team of special ops mechs into a nest of decepticon scientists to free a Senator once, and she held off an army of constructicons with only a handful of autobots under her command. She's just as vicious as Ironhide and Chromia in battle, perhaps worse."

"She didn't trust either of us," Jolt started, "not even me."

"Ghost trusts no one, she's even disobeyed a Prime."

"Optimus acted like he knew her personally."

Ratchet paused and turned back to his tools, "Believe it or not, she was not always so..."

Jolt raised an optic ridge and offered, "Sparkless?"

Ratchet cut him a look, "She's had her share of sacrifices and losses, and she has her way of dealing with them. Despite her...personality, she's a valuable fighter. She can lead and she can follow, and she can adapt to any situation. We are lucky to have her here on earth."

"Every mech we are sent out to repair and retrieve ends up worried out of his processor or keeps a blaster pointed at her like she has a target painted on her head," Jolt reverted back to the original topic, "I knew it was a bad idea to begin with."

"Orders are orders, Jolt," Ratchet lowered a hand to grab his trusty wrench, but was stopped again when the younger kept going.

"She's not some murdering pit-spawned monster, she never was, but they all treat her like she'll shoot them down if they turn their backs on her."

Wheeljack stayed quiet, watching the exchange. Ratchet argued, "Optimus didn't have much of a choice. You and I both know that she can find an injured mech faster than anyone else here. We need her where she is."

It was that moment that the med bay doors slid open, revealing the very topic of their discussion. Ratchet's expression softened slightly when he saw the tension just seep out of the mech almost instantly. He turned his attention to the femme.

Demona had her own sense of stress about her. She folded her arms across her chest, "I've been looking for you."

"I've been here," he answered. Demona fixed her optics on him, not quite impressed with his reply.

She motioned towards the door, "Go to the wash racks and clean up. I'll be there soon to help with your door wings."

Demona waited until the medic was gone before she turned her full attention to Ratchet, "Jazz told me that a decepticon appeared near base."

"Yes," now that things were starting to calm down in the room, he returned to his tools and finally reached for that wrench. Confusion flowed through him when he wrapped his fingers around it and lifted...only to find it stuck to the table like the two were one piece. Processor stumped for the moment, he moved to the next tool, to find _it _stuck to the surface. Confusion rapidly escalated into anger as he realized that he'd, once again, been 'pranked'.

When he spoke again, his tone was strained, "but the signal vanished once we had mechs assembled to confront it. Optimus had the twins and Ironhide scout the area, but none of them found anything."

Demona and Wheeljack watched as he tested each tool. By the time he reached the last one, he was seething, "Who the slag was meddling in my med bay!"

The femme's sigh drew their attention, "your _apprentice _talked my sparkling into 'organizing' for you."

Ratchet blinked and stared. _Jolt _had _Sundance_ do this? In the background, Wheeljack laughed, the first sound he'd made since the femme entered.

"So if you want to beat someone, you have my permission to go after him...just leave him in one piece, please," Demona vented softly, "as insufferably hard-headed and over-protective as he is, I still love him."

"How are you, by the way?" Ratchet started, crouching to pull out a container stored under the table, "Jolt said that Ghost had you at gun-point."

"She did."

"I'm sorry. Besides Ironhide, I don't believe any other living creature holds so much hate towards decepticons. If we had known that she was the new arrival, Prime would've gone to meet her himself. You are undamaged?"

"I'm fine," her frame tensed slightly, "She must hate them with her entire spark, she threatened to blast through Jolt to get to me."

Her tone had darkened considerably, and, once again, he was concerned. At least until he realized that his hands were _stuck _to the container. Ratchet let out a sharp vent, "What on earth has she done?"

The anger left Demona and she approached with silent foot steps. Kneeling beside him, she extended one claw blade, "Hold still."

He did as told, and with one, accurate swipe, she managed to cut through the substance without damaging him or his container. She started, "She did the same thing to Jolt once. He spent days trying to figure out a way to save his tools."

"And?"

"Cutting through it with a sharp blade works while it's still wet, but once it's dry...the only thing that works is cold water." She stood up, "she still won't tell us what she made it out of."

"Primus, all we need is _another_ inventor running around..." Ratchet ignored the look Wheeljack sent him and the protests. Demona shook her head and dismissed herself from the med bay.

* * *

><p><strong>A bit on Ghost...we now know she's got a reputation among the autobots...<strong>

**The little prank wasn't brilliant, but I thought it was kinda cute...and whatever that mystery goop is, I want some. I bet that crap works a ton better than duct tape. Probably have one more chapter at base before we switch back to the James family, which, if things go planned, will make a few of you guys giggle...**

**Probably have one more up tonight. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

He couldn't help but sink into his anger.

How dare that femme...'valuable warrior' or not, she had still threatened Demona, had actually powered up her blaster to actually blow apart his femme's spark. For a moment, he thought that he wouldn't get to her in time, and flashes of her, offline and cold in his arms, nearly overwhelmed his processor.

Jolt _knew _that Demona was a near slagging _perfect _warrior, as perfect as one could be. She was balanced, quick and strong. She had armor made of Cybertron's thickest alloys, and it fit her frame well without being a burden. Her claw blades were lethal, and she knew the exact angle it took to cut a mech in half. His mate was powerful, and he took pride in it, but she was not invincible.

_Primus. _Sometime between their bonding and now, she had let him into her memories to witness the great battle six years ago. He saw the sudden, life-changing decision she had made to save the human mother and her sparkling, he had felt her core-shattering agony as the giant structure collapsed right on top of her body. He had been with her through her recovery, through her time of getting to know Ratchet and Prime in the med bay. And he had seen the battle with her mech creator, had felt it when she plunged his claws into her own spark to cripple him long enough for victory. She had died. She knew it. Jolt knew it. Everyone knew it. She had died there alongside Megatron.

The memory alone crushed his spark like a giant fist, and he had nearly shut down from it all. If she had not been there with him, if she had not wrapped him tight with her arms and her spark, he would've sunk deeper and deeper into that pain...

So what would it be like if she offlined, and it was not just a memory?

In that image his fears created when Ghost had her weapon to Demona's chest, she was gone. Empty, and frozen, and lifeless...his spark went with her, because they were not simply a 'pair' or a 'couple'. They were one. There was no secrets or separation between them. With her dead, his spark lost it's light.

He had been so afraid.

Ghost was a slayer. He could see it in her hard optics. He knew she could have killed Demona there. And while the femme had put herself in danger countless times before, he could stop it this time. He was there, he could protect her.

Demona was silent the entire way back to base. She stayed that way even after they arrived, even after she found him in the med bay and sent him off to the wash racks. He couldn't feel anything from her. He couldn't hear her spark or her thoughts.

It was a shock to him. He expected her to at least scold him for putting himself in danger, like she always did when he stepped between her and a threat. Or even try to calm him down, because he _knew _she could feel his rage and his fears. But she did nothing, and it frightened him.

The tension left him when the spray of warm water touched his armor, clearing away dirt and dust. His shoulders slackened, processor spiraling in a different direction now. The anger became distant as thoughts passed through his head. Had he done something...wrong? Had he hurt her somehow? Was she mad at him?

He reached for her and pulled gently. His spark warmed, alerting him that she was near. Moments later, she was standing behind him and gently running her fingers down his door-wings, working through the mud and grit caked on his armor. It had been a while since either of them had cleaned up. Of course, they'd always been busy, so they didn't exactly have a chance to.

Her presence eased his troubled spark. Every ounce of rage and fear and confusion went away the second she touched him. His body relaxed. But Jolt still couldn't understand...

"Why are you not speaking to me?" His voice was soft, just loud enough to be heard over the water, "have I...angered you?"

His spark clenched when she didn't answer right away, but he felt her touching him through the bond. She swarmed him with soft, warm emotions and wrapped them tight around his spark. Love, calm, steadiness. There was an unbreakable sense of trust and an almost painful desire. A need to protect, a need to hold...

"I thought _I_ had angered _you_," Demona finally said out loud, "I tried to touch you before we left for base, but you would not respond...you left me in the hangar without a word."

_I WAS nearly blind with rage...no wonder I couldn't feel her...Primus. _He vented softly, "I am sorry."

"So am I."

They stood in silence for a while. She finished with his wings and went on to his back armor. Although he could reach the majority of it, he let her and scrubbed at a rather stubborn spot on his arm.

A thought came to the front of his processor. Although he didn't like to think over it often, the memory she had shared with him of digging herself out of her would-be grave in Mission City six years ago started cycling through his head. She had shown him, but she had kept certain things subdued. The physical pain was there, of course, but actual emotions had been, as the humans said, 'watered down'.

He opened up his processor to her and prodded the image in her direction carefully. Her hands never paused, but he felt her stiffen. He started, "Were you afraid?"

"Yes." Her fingers slipped beneath a plate of his armor and brushed a sensitive cable. This time, he was the one going rigid. A surge of heat rushed through his body. She pulled her hand back and returned to cleaning his armor, "I had abandoned my orders to save a tiny human and her creation, I had gone against every thing I'd ever known for them. And when I reached for Megatron, the only one I lived for, he turned me away and left me there to die. I think that, even then, I knew in my spark that I was truly alone."

He felt an old pain, one that curled around her. He continued, "It nearly destroyed you when he left, didn't it?"

"He was the only one in my life, Jolt. No one else was permitted to know about me...so I loved him, and hoped and prayed that someday he would love me back, as a creator should. I existed only for him, and once he was gone, it felt like there was nothing left."

Jolt let the words settle, finally cleaning that spot on his arm. He tried to think of some way to pull this pain away, to help her, but his processor nearly stuttered to a stop when her fingers dipped behind more of his armor. Demona stepped closer and slid her arms around his middle. She rested her head against his back, between his door-wings.

Jolt let himself fall into the love she was flooding him with. To think, that four human years ago, he had believed she'd been claimed by the twins, that he had lost her before he even had a chance. She tugged at his spark, coaxing him. He shuttered his optics and sank into her.

"What the hells-Yo!" someone shouted, shattering their peace. His optics snapped open and fixed on one of the smaller twins, narrowed into a glare. Mudflap put his hands on his hips, "I says you twos needs to get a room!"

"No bone'n in the showers!" Skidz added.

Demona tensed behind him. Jolt almost stepped forward to kick them out, but her arms tightened around him, holding him to her. She shifted enough so that she could look around him, "What are you two up to?"

"Wes came to take a washin', what the hells you doin'?"

"Gettin' their freak on!"

They both giggled and hooted hysterically, slapping their knees and each other on the back.

Frustration burned in Jolt's spark. He glared at the two. He finally had some time with her, alone, without chasing some random mech or femme down. She was there, and she was focused on him and him only. These two were taking it away. He was ready to drag them out by their 'ears' if he had to. He warned, "If you know what's good for you, you'll get the slag out of here. Now."

"Ooh! Big boy wit a femme thinks he _sooo_ scary!"

He dropped his hands to Demona's arms to remove them, as much as he hated to, but stopped when her expression turned from mild frustration to dark rage. Again, she tightened her hold around him. Her voice was far from the soft tone she'd used to speak to him. It was a low, feral growl now, one packed with warning, "_Out._"

And both mechs took one look at her and took off like Megatron himself was on their afts.

Demona finally let him go and she walked towards the doors, punching in a code with a practiced speed. He watched her with a sense of amazement, tilting his head slightly when he heard the locks slide into place. She turned back to him, crossing her arms, "They won't be back."

"I don't blame them," he said slowly, even though he didn't mean it. His spark was spinning, burning hot in his chest. He never pulled his optics from her. He couldn't, and he didn't want to.

She sent him a sharp look, "Careful, mech."

He moved towards her, "I thought we were going to talk."

"About?"

"Sparklings." He reached her and raised a hand to her face. Again, her fingers eased beneath his armor. His frame went rigid. Her gaze was bright, "We are talking, love."

He knew she could feel his smile through their bond.

* * *

><p><strong>I smell juniors on the way...<strong>

**Oh gawd, the shit those little chevies are going to start now...I like how Dem sent them packing with one look. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy. More will be up tomorrow. **

**Sweet dreams everyone. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

_"What's the difference between a chicken and a feather?"_

Pockets forced back a groan, raising his free hand to push through his hair. He straightened from Jo's truck, green eyes half open. He'd been working on the stupid thing to fix the damage Rex's little 'accident' had caused. So far, it wasn't looking too good. He was dreading having to tell her what happened when she came back from the hospital.

He readjusted his hold on the phone, "Don't you have a funeral to go to Rex?"

_"Don't change the subject, Big Foot! Now tell me, what's the difference between a chicken and a feather!"_

"I don't know, what?" He didn't even try to hide his frustrated tone this time. He shifted the phone to his other ear and leaned back down into the truck's insides.

_"Ones cute and the others kinky."_

Pockets sighed. _I have the most retarded human being as a best friend...what the hell is wrong with me..._

"Very funny," Pockets said when Rex's hysterical laughter died down some, "are you done yet?"

_"Hang on, I got another for ya. Why do you cook bacon, but bake cookies?"_

Gears walked into the shop. She cast him one look then smiled and went over to one of her shelves to pull down her latest work of art.

_"Hey, your mom said that Demi and Bolt were going to have a baby."_

It took a second for Pockets to catch up to the sudden subject change, but he answered, "His name is _Jolt_, and yes, they're going to try for a sparkling."

_"Calm down over there, Gigantor. How do giant alien robots do the dirty anyway?"_

Pockets hissed when he cut his hand on a sharp edge. He stood to back up and hit his head on the hood. Cursing vividly, he backed away. Rex went on, oblivious, _"I mean, how do they even get boners and how do they 'do it'? Do they hook up some wires or straddle a lightning rod? Jump cables? Press each other's buttons?"_

_I am SO not having this conversation, _Pockets made his way to the 'kitchen' area of the shop and started to run warm water over his bleeding palm, "I don't know and I don't want to know."

_"What? You're not even curious?"_

"No, I'm not. Really, Rex? Is this what you think about when you're lonely?"

There was a snort, _"No. When I'm 'lonely', I hide out in your closet and play strip poker with the clowns that live there."_

"Can I kick your ass? Because you're driving my nuts."

_"Sure. Here, I'll even stick it out for you."_

He shook his head, a small grin on his face, "You're so weird."

_"Ah hell, I gotta let you go. Relatives are storming the hotel, I need to hide before they sniff me out."_

He blinked, "Relatives?"

_"Yeah, I've got a whole different 'family' down here, and they've been up my ass since I got here."_

"Good luck with that."

_"Thanks, tell everyone that I miss 'em. Can't wait to come back home."_

"Alright, Take care of yourself, Rex."

_"You too, Big Foot."_

Pockets hung up and set the phone down on the counter, turning his full attention to cleaning the cut. Gears started talking in the background, "How's Rex?"

"Well, he's...Rex. He's fine, hiding from some obsessive family members, but fine."

"Someone related to that crazy ass kid?" She shook her head, "The world is doomed."

"Just wait until he gets married to Shark and they start multiplying..._then _we'll be doomed," Pockets muttered. He trailed off when Gears grinned at him. He raised a brow, "did I say something funny?"

"Speaking of _marriage_..."

He sighed, "No, mom."

"Why not? You adore her, and I know she loves you," she started, "and I really like that girl. She's just right for you."

Pockets watched as the water went from clear to red as it passed over the wound, which was still bleeding, "I love Jo, but we're fine the way we are right now."

"Well don't wait until I'm old and cranky before you actually do anything," Gears warned, "Or I'll beat the crap out of you with my cane."

"What if you're in a wheel chair?"

"Then I'll run you over."

"You're not old, mom," he sent her a smile then turned off the water and grabbed a paper towel, "you won't ever be old."

She reached up and kissed him on the cheek, "What on earth would I be without my kids?"

* * *

><p><strong>I really wanna get Jo back in there soon...and Shark, too. Sorry for a late and not-so-exciting update. <strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

Demona didn't know what pulled her from recharge.

She had fallen deep into her dreams and was at peace, Sundance curled in her arms and Jolt close beside her. Once all of her systems were online and running, albeit tiredly, she shifted to get out of the sandwich the two had formed around her. Jolt's arms tightened around her immediately, trapping her against him. She vented softly, processor working for a way to slip away.

_Something _was off tonight. She could feel it in her spark.

The solution came moments later, when the alarm blared throughout the entire base, so loud it shook the walls. Sundance jerked awake with a growl, but the mech behind her only pulled her closer, still lost in recharge. She rolled her optics and set Sundance down on the berth, bringing both hands to his to pull them off. He'd been 'dead to the world' since they'd returned from the wash-racks. He stayed awake long enough to lay down and put his arms around her, then he was gone, so deep into it that not even the slagging _alarm _could wake him.

Demona used their bond, pulling at his spark, "Jolt."

Sundance yawned, "What _is _that stupid noise?"

"Decepticons have been detected," she explained, "I'm taking you to the med bay. And_ stay _there, Sundance."

The dragon stared up at her with sleepy optics, but nodded slowly. Demona turned back to Jolt and elbowed him in the side when she couldn't remove his arms herself. His body jumped, systems starting up. His hold loosened and she moved away.

Sundance hauled herself into Demona's hand and settled as she headed for the door. Jolt was on his feet and behind them as soon as he registered the screaming alarms.

Ironhide and Chromia were barreling down the hall once they left their quarters. Demona left her sparkling in the med bay as promised, and followed the rush of autobots.

Her spark squeezed when her sensors picked up a familiar decepticon signal. There was a flash of white, sleek armor before the femme in the center of it all straightened, fists clenched but blades hidden. Her hidden optics fell upon Demona, "Would you kindly tell your comrades to put away their weapons?"

"Paradox," Demona countered, "why are you here?"

"You're missing a seeker, Demona."

Her spark froze over as the words sunk in.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm <em>SLOWLY<em> finding my rythm with this story...chapters are getting easier to write and things are beginning to pick up. This update was longer, but I decided to split them into two separate chapters. The next one might be up tonight. **

**My attention is being split between this, planning another fanfic and working on my actual _book, _which is going to be published sometime in 2012, hopefully. So, even though I'm finding my groove here, the updates probably won't pick up much. **

**I'm going to pull a Jolt and go crash for a few hours to rest my brain...Love you guys. **

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

Paradox's words echoed in Demona's processor; _"You're missing a seeker, Demona." _

_How the slag did he..._She tensed beside Jolt.

A tense quiet fell over them all, until Ironhide spun around and barked an order at the bigger set of twins. With a nod, the two mechs folded down into their sleek alternates and shot away. Paradox went on, "Don't worry yourselves with proof. I was there for the trine's reunion."

Her gaze, once again, fixed on Demona, "I came to warn you, Demona. Starscream is turning against Megatron, they're plotting to destroy him and take over the decepticon ranks."

Someone snorted. Ratchet cut in, "It wouldn't be the first time."

"No, it wouldn't. I'm not worried about _that _part of his 'master plan'. Megatron could crush any of those three."

"Then why are you here?" Prime asked, optics curious but wary. The Reaper answered, "They're coming after Demona first."

"You assisted her in Egypt," Prime said slowly, "So I'm sure you've seen that she can handle Starscream and his brothers."

"There is a reason why we're called _decept_icons," Paradox turned her stare on him next, visor black, "they're not the most intelligent mechs of the faction, but I've been around long enough to know that nothing motivates those three like revenge, and that is the only thing driving them now. I'm going to keep an optic on them from now on."

"Why did you come back?" Jolt asked, surprising Demona. He continued, "Four years ago, you tried to offline Demona. In Egypt, you saved her life. Why?"

The memory of the night Paradox left pushed it's way to the front of Demona's processor. The thought was a mere whisper, one he couldn't hear through the bond. _She's my creator, but she didn't know...not her fault..._

"She spared my life," the older femme answered after a moment of studying the mech, "and I thought that maybe there was hope for us all if Megatron's own creation saw the value in life."

Her gaze returned to Prime when he addressed her. Seeing no threat, the autobots dispersed, although a few remained nearby to keep an optic on Paradox. Jolt guided Demona away.

"You still don't trust her," Demona started.

Jolt hesitated before stating slowly, "I still don't know what to _think_ of her. She did fight to kill you, but she also saved your life. My processor is split trying to figure out some solution..." He trailed off before changing the subject completely, "how are you feeling?"

"Fine," she said truthfully, "it's only been twelve hours, Jolt. Am I supposed to feel different so soon?"

"We won't know for sure for a few more days..."

"That's what I thought-" She cut herself off and turned when the twins came racing back. They slid to a stop, transforming before their wheels stopped turning. Sideswipe said, "She's right. Starscreams gone-has been for a while."

"I may be a slayer, but I don't lie," Paradox said simply, "I'm just curious as to _how _he escaped the slagging _autobot base _without detection. Aren't you mechs old enough to hold on to one little prisoner? He's been gone for at least a week, and you're just now noting his absence, because I told you."

Sunstreaker moved forward like he was about to knock her flat on her aft, but Sideswipe pulled him back. Ironhide seethed. Skids got brave and pointed a finger at her, "If yous known about this for a whole week, why the hells are you just now showin' your hot ass up?"

"It was a long trip. I found Starscream and his brethren across the country. I came here as soon as I could...but not so many of you trust me," Paradox answered, turning her gaze on him. Her visor tinted red, just enough to be noticed, and both twins took a step back, "I wasn't about to risk getting my aft shot off, so I waited until Demona returned."

"_You_ were the signal we detected two days ago," Ratchet summarized, "the one we couldn't find."

"Disappearing is what I do best," she confirmed.

They all turned to Jolt when he asked, "Who was in charge of watching him last week?"

"_Twins_," Ironhide growled, turning his optics on Mudflap and Skidz, who were doing their best to sneak away. Once they heard his voice, they both started running and tripped over themselves. Chromia and her sisters blocked them from going any further.

"You put _them _on guard duty?" Paradox asked in a tone full of disbelief.

Prime pressed a hand to his face and muttered, "We were short on mechs..." He straightened, "Paradox, I understand that you aided us in Egypt and risked your life to save Demona from offlining. Would you be willing to join us?"

Demona's spark tightened. She fixed her gaze on the femme, who was silent. The saboteur's face-plates were emotionless. She didn't defend herself when one of the mechs started, "Optimus, you can't be serious. She's a decepticon. Her processor is hardwired for destruction and offlining. There's a reason why she's called 'The Reaper'."

Before he could respond, the femme designated Ghost made her appearance, stepping out of the shadows to fix cold optics on Paradox, "Don't bring something up when you know nothing about it. She's called Reaper because she has ripped through the decepticon ranks on Cybertron. She was created decepticon, but she has never attacked an autobot."

"Except Demona," he argued.

Her optics narrowed, "Who is _also _a decepticon. I really don't like the fact that you 'seasoned mechs' are letting enemy _spawn _into our ranks, but if there was _one _that I would ally myself with, it would be her," she looked at Prime, "I've known you since we were in the academy, and you _know _that I'm telling the truth."

"And _you_," the same hard headed mech snapped, "have your own reputation. Disobeying a Prime, causing havoc on the battle field and _never_ quite being around when we need you the most!"

Demona pulled away from Jolt and posted herself between the two of them before Ghost could retaliate. She addressed the mech first, "I understand why you're wary of her, but I'm going to ask you to trust _me_. Paradox made up for her attack-"

She felt anger curling around Jolt's spark, growing worse when the young mech snapped, interrupting, "But she tried to kill you! How can you trust her?"

Demona kept her stare even and her tone calm, "In the beginning, I tried to kill our Prime."

Apparently, he didn't know that. He shut his mouth and stared at her with wide optics, like he wasn't believing what he was hearing. He was one of the mechs she and Jolt and saved a few years ago. Like all the others, he had been cautious of her, but after she helped him around base he came to trust her like an old comrade.

Demona continued, "It was his forgiveness and his trust that helped make me into what I am today. I forgive Paradox, and I trust her with my whole spark. In Egypt, I was alone and surrounded by Megatron and his soldiers. The autobots were still across the earth, I knew that I would have to face them alone. Paradox came, and she stayed with me throughout the battles."

He seemed to deflate. Demona fixed her stare on Ghost, "I don't know who you are or what life you've had to live, but I haven't given you a reason to treat me the way you have. _You _were the one that pointed a weapon at me, _you _were the one that threatened to kill my mech when he protected me."

"You're Megatron's child," Ghost answered, "that's all the reason I need."

Demona's optics darkened, turning cold. Anger lanced through her, "_Don't _compare me to Megatron. I am _nothing _like him."

"You are more like him than you realize," she started, "he wasn't always evil. He started out like you-decent and protective of his comrades. But his spark twisted and went black. He changed from a hardworking mech to a sparkless killer. You have the same optics he did, dependable on the surface but wrathful inside. I have no doubt that you will turn out the same, someday you'll become your namesake and slaughter like you were born to do."

Demona's processor slowed down, trying to work through the femme's words. Her spark went from raging to cold and numb. When she didn't respond right away, Ghost added, "All of you are slagging morons for trusting her."

Prime's optics hardened. Jolt was hot with anger as he made his way to her. Ironhide's cannons spun. Both sets of twins had fallen quiet and were watching carefully.

"The only fool here," Paradox said, soft voice loud in the silence, "is you."

Ghost turned to her. Prime stepped in before they could start an entirely new argument, "You are dismissed, Ghost. Return to your quarters."

Without a sound, the femme left. Demona was pulled from her troubled thoughts when Jolt's fingers touched her face. She focused on Prime when he asked, "Are you alright, Demona?"

"Fine," she answered, although her tone was quiet. Jolt looked past her to glare at the disappearing femme, "I really don't like that femme."

Prime sighed, "Ghost wasn't always this way. Paradox, your answer?"

"An alliance," Paradox replied, "as your soldiers have so bluntly put it, I _was_ created by decepticon hands. What were the words? 'hardwired for destruction and offlining'? They may not be too comfortable with me resting a few doors down the hall from their quarters."

"So you'll help."

Paradox nodded, "I'll keep tracking the seekers."

"Sideswipe, Sunstreaker." Both mechs straightened at the tone of their leader, "go with Paradox, send in daily reports. I want you on the road by morning."

"Yes sir," Sideswipe turned and gave Sunstreaker a push towards the base to prepare.

Prime issued more orders before the crowd broke apart. Ironhide went off towards the brig, dragging Mudflap and Skidz behind him, who were protesting and whining. Prime returned to the hangar, followed by Ratchet. Soon it was only Demona, Jolt, and Paradox.

Jolt shifted and slid his arms around Demona from behind, reaching through their bond. His spark was still shaking with anger, but he was pushing it back and trying to ease her own away. He said softly, "I love you."

The tension melted away. She could feel his smile through the bond when she relaxed against him. She looked at Paradox, "Where have you been?"

"Trying to change," the saboteur answered, "searching for answers..." The visor slid out of place, revealing beautiful scarlet optics. Paradox looked at Demona, "Ghost did know Megatron before he turned, Demona, but she did not know him well, and she does not know you. There was a darkness in his optics, but there is a light in yours."

For the second time that morning, her processor slowed down as the statement sunk into her. Before she could respond, the femme was walking away. She watched her creator leave.

Jolt tightened his hold on her, the fingers of one hand slipping beneath a plate of her side armor to brush over the sensitive cables hidden there. Demona leaned against him, "What do you think of her now?"

"I believe the human expression is 'she's growing on me'," he rested his chin on top of her head, managing to not impale himself on her horns. Demona smiled, although it was small and not quite genuine. Her spark leaned against his, but it still pulsed almost painfully in her chest.

* * *

><p><strong>Long-ass dramafied talk...Ghost, you are <em>such<em> a ho...**

**:D Paradox is officially allied with autobots. Happy day. I'm really liking her in this story...She still hasn't met Sundance yet. Can't wait for that. ^^**

**And someone asked me if Jolt and Demona did the dirty in the wash-racks. Yes, they did, which is why Jolt was _'dead to the world'_ last chapter and why he's asking Demona how she feels in this one. **

**Love you guys, sweet dreams or good morning or whatever applies when you get around to reading. **

**Demona and her family, Paradox, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

"Come on, momma, wake up!" Sundance said, gliding down from her perch on top of her father's shelf of tools. She spread her wings to land gently on her femme creator's chest, then tucked them in close to her body. She settled slowly, staring at Demona with soft red optics, "Please? There's a place I found with Jetfire. I want you to see it."

Demona stirred. Sundance wiggled around, trying to make her wake up faster. She blinked when Jolt's optics onlined instead. Disbelief coursed through her, "Daddy? You're _awake_?"

Her mech creator was _never _up this early, unless he had a mission or morning lesson with Ratchet. Her momma was the one that woke up with her and played with her in the mornings. But it seemed like she was recharging deeper than Jolt.

Jolt blinked slowly at her, lifting a hand to drag down his face, "Sundance, what are you...?"

"Mommas not waking up. I think she's sick," Sundance proceeded to climb over Demona's armor until she was sitting on her throat cables and leaning over her face. She squinted like she was searching for something out of place, "she's always up now..."

"Sundance."

She tilted her head and leaned closer. Jolt tried again, "Sundance, let her rest."

Sundance looked at him, "What? Aren't you worried about her?"

His optics were soft, "She's fine, she just needs to recharge longer than usual now."

"So...she's not sick?"

He shook his head. Sundance vented sharply, "Fine, I'll leave her alone..."

"You should go see what Ironhides up to," Jolt suggested, "he should be awake."

Sundance grinned at him, "I haven't visited him in a while!"

She slid down to the berth and jumped off the edge, spreading her wings to slow her landing. She ran out the door as soon as it was open and went bounding down the hall. She was making her way to his work space when a flash of white at the end of the hall caught her attention. Sundance paused, tilting her head curiously as she tried to think of anyone here that had plain, white armor. _No one. _The weapons specialist was forgotten as this new mystery presented itself. She changed course and made her way, as fast as she could, towards the hangar.

She darted through Sideswipe's feet and turned sharply to avoid crashing into Skidz. Both mechs called after her but she ignored them. She entered the hangar, stopping to scan her optics over the structure. Optimus was standing nearby, talking to Ironhide. In the corner, the mech called Wheeljack was sorting through some spare parts. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe came in behind her and stepped around her form, the latter swinging an arm down to pat her on the head as he passed.

"Good morning, Sundance," Optimus said when he noticed her. Sundance sent him a smile, "Hi Optimus!"

He turned completely towards her when Ironhide started yelling at the smaller twins, "Where's your creators?"

"I couldn't get momma to wake up this morning, so daddy told me to go bug 'Hide." She saw the concerned look on his face and stood up on her back legs so she was taller, "he said she's not sick, though. Just that she needs more rest than usual now."

"Do you know why?"

"Nope." Sundance saw that same flash of white and turned. Her optics widened as she saw the tall, lean femme. She had _never _seen this one before, but she was graceful and quiet and so beautiful, the second prettiest femme she'd ever seen. Her mother was first, of course. Before her processor could catch up, her feet carried her away from the big mech and towards the stranger.

"Um, hello?" She called.

The femme stopped and turned, scarlet optics falling upon her. Sundance took a step back when she realized just how vivid the color of her optics were, and how cold they seemed to be. But the coldness faded away, and she knelt before her, and greeted, "Hello, little one."

"I'm Sundance," she moved closer, pulling her wings in, "what's your designation?"

"I am Paradox."

"Wow, your optics are like ours," Sundance said softly, "you're very pretty."

Paradox's optics softened, "Who are your creators, Sundance?"

"Demona and Jolt." Sundance sat down and tilted her head, "do you know them?"

Something strange passed through the femmes gaze when Sundance said her mother's designation, something like a shocked disbelief. She even repeated, "Demona?"

"Yeah. She's really strong. Her armor is red, like mine."

"I didn't know she had a sparkling..."

"So you _do _know her."

"We're..." She trailed off like she was searching for the right word, "...good friends."

"Are you a momma, too?"

When she spoke, her voice was very quiet, and her optics changed again, "Yes."

Sundance stood up and walked over, standing up on her back legs to place her front claws on Paradox's knee, "Really? Where's your sparkling?"

"She doesn't need me anymore."

Sundance squinted at her, "That's a lie. I'm always going to need my momma. Your sparkling will always need you, even if shes grown up. A mommas supposed to always be there for her daughter."

"I was not always there for her, Sundance, I couldn't care for her like I needed to."

"Then care for her now. I bet she loves and misses you, and wants you to come back."

A small, almost pained smile pulled at the femme's lip plates, "You're a wise one, aren't you? Speaking words of faith and peace and hope, just like your creator."

They both turned their heads when Optimus called for her. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were compacted into their fast alternates and idled not-so-quietly near the hangar entrance. Paradox looked back down at Sundance, "I must go."

Sundance frowned, "But you'll be back, won't you?"

"I'll come back."

The dragon dropped down to all fours and stepped back, watching as the femme straightened. She took a step. Her armor split and shifted soundlessly, her frame folding down. In one motion she took another step, shifted forms into a white Dodge Viper, and sped out of the hangar.

Sundance watched her go. She smiled at 'Hide when he grunted a greeting at her, and turned around to head towards Jetfire's quarters. She couldn't wait to tell him all about Paradox.

* * *

><p><strong>:3<strong>

**I sense the beginnings of a friendship there. **

**Sorry for a late update. Hope you guys enjoyed it...Love to you all. Apologies for any mistakes.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

_Of all the pit spawned young, vain mechs that could have been assigned to be my aid, _Paradox thought darkly, engine rumbling as the two inspected the damage to their 'horribly ruined' paint jobs, _Primus had to curse me with THESE two. _

"Slag," the one designated Sideswipe muttered, twisting this way and that to view different plates of his armor, "This is _real_ slag."

"I just waxed," Sunstreaker growled, "fragging worthless seekers..."

"You are the first mechs I've seen that are not proud of their scars," she finally spoke up after searching for patience and failing. She remained in her alternate, a short ways away from them. Her hidden red optics were cast up to the sky, but she could still feel the looks they sent her way. She continued, "one would think that the two of you were love-crazy young femmes still attending the academy, more concerned about your appearance than your injuries."

The red one snorted, "And what would _you_ know about injuries, decepticon?"

The yellow one was more concerned about the other part of her remark, and snarled, "We are _not _femmes."

Paradox ran a scan over the pair, who both stiffened with widened optics when they felt it, and answered after analyzing the data, "Sideswipe, there are three severed cables in your side. That stinging pain that you're feeling and choosing to ignore because you think it's just a strain? It's going to cause a stasis lock if you don't strip your armor and tend to it now. You have damaged a direct line to your spark."

His blue optics grew even rounder. She switched to Sunstreaker without pause, "And you. Your processor is so wrapped around your 'paint job' that you are completely oblivious to the damage on your joints from that little stunt you pulled. I suggest you sit for a while before the clasps break from the strain and you fall flat on your aft."

Sideswipe was hurriedly yanking off plates of his side armor, while sending her a baffled and slightly horrified look, "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

Sunstreaker bent to look at his knees before one buckled beneath him and he fell backwards with a loud curse and more ramblings about scratches and scrapes.

Paradox kept her voice monotone, "Because you _ladies _were too busy complaining about your beloved paint." She turned her optics back towards them, watching as Sideswipe eyeballed his injury. It occurred to her then that these two were warriors, not healers. With a vent, she activated her transformation routine. They both looked at her when she straightened in her natural form. She turned her face towards them, visor flipped down, "You two have no experience in the medical field, do you?"

"We're front-liners," Sideswipe started, "not medics."

Paradox approached him, "Lay down."

He hesitated and sent her a strange look. Again, she vented, "I was a medic before I was a warrior. I know what I'm doing."

When he didn't move, she knocked him down.

Paradox's spark squeezed painfully as she slowly transformed a hand into the tools she needed for the task. Ancient memories filed through her processor, one right after another. She continued, although her voice was softer, "I was a healer...I graduated from the academy and was shipped off to a mine as soon as I was out, to tend to those often injured there...I've had to completely piece mechs back together again..."

As fatal as the injury could be if left untended, it was a quick repair. She moved to Sunstreaker next. Sideswipe started up the conversation again, "An academy? The decepticons have a academy?"

"I was not always a decepticon."

They both studied her when she spoke the words, like she was a puzzle that they were trying to solve. While she reinforced the clasps that secured the joints of the mech's knees, she said, "Contact Prime and tell him about our little tangle with the seekers. Damage was taken and we won't be able to continue the chase for a full human day."

"A _day_?"

"Yes."

"_Slag._"

* * *

><p>Jolt ran his fingers over the edge of Demona's open chest plates, electric blue optics soft. He said, "I told you."<p>

He raised his gazed to her face in time to see her roll her optics, though they were just as warm as his were at the moment. He continued, "I knew when you started recharging more. You should know that Sundance isn't very happy about that, either."

"I thought so," she leaned her head back, "How long...?"

"A few months before it'll be ready for it's first frame, a few weeks before we know whether it's a mech or a femme," he lowered his hand to touch the protective casing surrounding the tiny spot of light pressed against her spark chamber, "how are you feeling?"

"Tired," she answered honestly, "and heavy, like I haven't recharged in days."

He pulled back and settled back behind her on the berth as she closed her chest plates again. He laid down, "Then rest."

"Don't you have lessons with Ratchet in an hour?"

"He's occupied. The lesser twins decided it would be amusing to paint his tools...Ratchets showing them just how amused he really is."

"Have you told anyone?"

"No."

"Not even Sundance?"

He vented softly, "Would you rest, femme?"

She fell quiet. His systems slowed down and his arm slid over her body, pulling her close. He was just on the edge of falling into recharge when a thought crossed her processor. She asked, breaking the silence, "Primus, Jolt. What if it turns out to be twins?"

He tensed behind her and groaned.

* * *

><p><strong>More tomorrow, hopefully. <strong>

**Love you guys.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Pockets turned dark green eyes upon the yearlings running back and forth along the fence line, tossing their growing manes and flagging their tails behind them like true Arabians. He was watching one in particular, a dark colored colt with intelligent black eyes. Even then he could pick out certain traits and behaviors that tied the colt to his dam. Pockets looked away from the horses when he heard someone approaching.

Jo was only a few inches taller than what she had been the first day he met her. Her hair was still the same curled gold, her eyes were the same dark blue. She hadn't changed much since Egypt, she still wore the same pair of boots and the same flannel shirts.

"Thank you for bringing us home," she said, her voice soft, "I really need to quit relying on you guys to take us everywhere."

Pockets shrugged, "It's fine. Hows your mom?"

Jo stopped beside him. Her eyes became distant, turning towards the horses, "The same; wasting away without a hope of getting better. The only difference is that now she can't hide it."

"Do they know what it is yet?"

"Some type of rare disease. I don't remember the name."

"Your brothers?"

"The youngest doesn't understand whats happening. The oldest is falling to pieces," she leaned against him and closed her eyes, "I pray to God every day that he would take the sickness from her body. Even if we traded, I'd gladly take it and give her my health if it meant she'd live long enough to see the kids grow up."

He put an arm around her, but didn't say anything because he couldn't find the right words. So she continued, "My daddy raised me to believe, but I can't help but lose faith every time I see her."

"You can't give up. Don't just let her go," he finally said, "lets go inside. I bet the boys are hungry."

She nodded and let him walk her back to the house.

* * *

><p>"Of all the freaking-" Gears cut herself off and jumped back when something hissed and a puff of black smoke formed over the truck's engine. She snapped, "what the hell, Rex! Only YOU could cause this kind of trouble!"<p>

Her rant went unheard. The shop was empty besides herself, and once again she was reminded of her dog, buried underneath the car he always stood watch on somewhere in the junkyard. She sighed, "Things just fall apart around here, don't they?"

She turned away from the truck, wiping her hands on her jeans as she pushed her mind to better memories. Pockets, when he went out and picked the neighbor's roses for her on her birthday when he was little. Critter, when he smiled at her for the first time. Demona, pulled from death by her own stubborn will, eyes lighting to end the hell Gears and her boys had fallen into after her defeat. The first two years she had lived with them, apart of their family.

Gears blinked and looked up when someone knocked on the door of her shop. She made her way over and opened the door.

Shark was standing there, arms crossed over her chest and donning the usual 'Shark attire'; an old band t-shirt, old converses, and a pair of denim shorts. Gears blinked, taking the young woman in. She'd only met Shark once or twice, but she knew that the girl had not lived an easy life. It was clear in her eyes and the scars marking her skin. Despite it whatever those hardships were, it was also clear that she loved Rex, and he loved her.

"I wasn't expecting you, Shark," Gears said, "is something wrong?"

"Gears," Shark greeted, "can I come in?"

Gears opened the door further to let her in. Shark dropped her wallet on the counter, "I don't usually just drop in on someone, but I needed to know. Do you know where Rex is?"

"In Mississippi," Gears answered, raising a brow, "you're his girlfriend, didn't he tell you?"

Shark was quiet. It was then Gears noticed something off, something about her eyes. Gears moved closer and pushed her hair from her face, "Shark, what happened?"

"He hasn't called."

"I'm sure he's just busy hiding from those cousins, he'll call you soon. We all know that he wouldn't let you go on worrying. As much as a pain in the ass that boy is, he loves you."

"That's what I'm talking about," Shark said, looking her in the eye. Her voice was steady, but her eyes were heavy with worry, "Rex doesn't go a day without calling me at least once, even when he's here. He always finds some excuse, he's paranoid that I'm going to vanish or leave him like his mother if he doesn't make sure I'm still there."

"Then he'll call later today."

"No, Gears," her voice was a whisper now, "he hasn't called in three days. No stupid, corny little 'I love you' texts or voice mail...nothing."

Gears could only stare as the words settled in her mind. At first, she wasn't concerned. Everyone slacked off, didn't they? Maybe the day of the funeral had just passed and he was grieving, as unlikely as it sounds.

Then, it struck her that Shark was right. When he was on break in the shop, the first thing he did was pull out his phone and call her to bug her. He called her as he was walking out the door at the end of the day to let her know he was on his way. He had always made sure to talk to her, as annoying as it was at times.

And now that she really thought about it, he hadn't called her, either. Not even Pockets. _What the hell..._

Gears felt her heart grow cold in her chest. She repeated, voice just as quiet as Shark's, "Three days?"

"Nothing."

"Shit."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry guys, I've edited, deleted, and replaced this chapter twenty times. Promise I'll leave it alone this time around...<strong>

**Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

"Get in the truck," Gears said, pushing Shark towards the big red dodge, "we need to go, now."

Shark shot her a sharp look and tensed up. She stepped back, out of reach and away from the truck, "What in the hell are you-"

"Bastards, I should have known they wouldn't stay hidden forever," Gears growled, leaving her to grab the emergency bag she kept on the shelf. It had extra clothes for her and her kids in it, with the bare necessities for a spontaneous sleepover. She kept it in her shop for emergencies just like this. She threw it and a second with more clothes in it into the truck bed, "what the hell, Rex!"

"_Bastards_? What-"

"Dem. I gotta call Dem," she kept going, grabbing a few more things before she threw open the door, "she needs to know."

"Hey! You crazy woman!" Shark snapped, "What the hell are you talking about!"

"I get that you were a real badass back wherever you came from, I get that you're the stuff of nightmares for whatever idiots get in your way, but if you don't get in that truck right now so help me I will drag your ass by your nose and throw you into the seat!"

Shark blinked, "Damn."

"If you want to help Rex," the older tried again, turning faded green eyes on her, "you need to trust me."

Shark studied her expression before turning and climbing up into the cab without another word. Gears huffed and got in beside her after snatching her phone off the charger. She tossed it to Shark, "Call my daughter, under 'Dem'."

Again, the younger sent her a look but she did as told.

Gears put the truck in reverse and waited long enough for the garage door to rise before she backed out and spun in the gravel. Shark nearly dropped the phone and held on to the seat with one hand, "You are so fucking crazy..."

"What? Rex didn't tell you that Misses James jumped off the deep end a long time ago?"

"It's ringing," Shark said, "you want it on speaker, Crazy?"

"No, just give it here."

The phone ended up against her ear, "Come on, babe, answer..."

It wasn't until they were pulling out of the junkyard that Demona answered, _"Gears?"_

"Have you heard anything about our _favorite_ three amigos? The ones that like to make our lives hell?" Gears started, "because I've got some news that will just make your day."

Demona waited a moment, like she was thinking or using her bond thing to talk to one of the guys. Then, sounding a little pissed herself,_ "Prime says that Paradox and the twins lost them."_

"Wait, you were tracking them?"

_"Yes. Starscream escaped-"_

"He _what_?" Gears almost yelled, "When?"

_"Almost two weeks ago."_

"And you didn't tell us! What the hell, Dem!"

_"Gears...what's happened?"_

"Rex is missing."

There was quiet on the other end. Gears kept going, "Dem, how long has it been since they lost their signal?"

_"Three days..."_

"Dammit...Why didn't you say something?"

_"He just now told me. Where are you?"_

"On my way to pick up Alex from school. We're loading up in the truck, will head for base after I've got the boys and Jo's family. And give Prime a piece of my mind while you're at it! That's bullshit!"

_"Please be careful."_

"Just worry about finding Rex. He's a little shit, but he's our little shit."

She hung up. Shark was staring at her with raised brows, "Three amigos? Signal? Base? Just who the hell are you people?"

"So Rex never told you about our adopted family," Gears started.

"Um, no."

"You'll find out soon enough," Gears dropped the phone in Shark's lap, "now call Alec."

* * *

><p><strong>Got another after this one. Hope you guys enjoyed it. <strong>

**Love to the readers.**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

"You knew, didn't you?" Demona asked, fixing her red optics on Jolt as he organized his tools.

Sundance was curled up in her arms, blissfully deep in recharge, which was where part of Demona wanted to be. The other part wanted to drop everything and rush to her family's aid.

It had been a few hours since Demona had gotten the call from Gears and found out that Paradox and the taller set of twins had lost the seekers. Three days. Three slagging days since Sideswipe had reported in to Prime to inform him that after their day of recovery, the trail had run cold. They had known about it but kept the information from her, a fact that had her spark hot with rage and twisted with pain.

"Prime has already sent Arcee and her sisters out to protect Gears at the junkyard," Jolt tried, "he sent them out the moment we were informed about the seekers. Now, they're escorting her and her family back to base. They're safe, Demona."

"Rex isn't," she said quietly, "as annoying as the fragging boy can be...he's part of the family..."

Jolt turned and fixed his gaze on her, "We'll find him."

"Why didn't you tell me," Demona said, ignoring the way how he tugged gently at her spark, "you _know _how much I love them, you _know _how fragile their lives are."

"Primus, femme," He vented sharply, "of _course_ I know-you willingly put your life on the line every time one of them is threatened. You would sacrifice yourself without a thought if it meant keeping them safe. I was there, I was forced to hang back and worry as you went against all reason and all odds for them!"

"Yes!" She snapped, "For _them_!"

He tensed slightly at her sudden change of tone. She kept going, shifting Sundance to the berth without waking the sparkling, and stood up, "You weren't there! You weren't on earth when I was still twisted and blinded by a one-sided love for my creator! When he left me to perish in the destruction of Mission City, I was broken, a failure, a useless waste of metal and blade! I was lost, Jolt, and I wanted to die there in Ratchet's med bay, even while he and Prime worked to rebuild my crushed frame...there was nothing left of me..."

Her voice softened, "But when I woke for the first time, she was there. And she stayed there. Every time I onlined, she spoke to me. She was the first one, Jolt, to ever give me hope. She had it fixed in that stubborn human mind of hers that I was not the monster Megatron had wanted to create, and she made sure I knew it. A protector, she called me. The first time I'd ever heard the word. This family gave me a purpose. They gave me life, and I will protect them until my spark grows cold in my chest."

By then he was on his feet and facing her, "I know...I can feel your love for them. That's why we didn't tell you, Demona, so you wouldn't take off and throw yourself into a mess again. Prime has put together a team to go after him."

She crossed her arms, "Rex is my brother. You want me to stay here and wait patiently when we both know I could reach him faster than any of you mechs. You can't ask this of me, Jolt."

Jolt moved closer to her and raised a hand to her face. He corrected softly, "Yes, I can. You are in no condition for travel. Stay here and protect our sparklings."

He squeezed her spark when the anger drained out of her. She was just exhausted now. He took hold of her arms and guided her closer until she was leaning against him. "I promise we'll bring the boy home in one piece."

"I want you home in one piece as well," Demona poked him lightly in the shoulder, "be careful."

"Yes, dear."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoy.<strong>

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

It was dark. _So dark._

He lay on the cold, hard, uneven floor. He was stretched out on his side, hand pressed to his shattered ribs. Every breath was ragged, sharp. His body shook but he had long since become numb. His heart beat unevenly, loud in the silence. His brown eyes were open but he could see nothing.

Rex was far away. In his mind, he was back at home, listening to Shark sing _Hey Jude_ as she got ready for work in the bathroom. She wasn't Beyonce, but she wasn't bad either. Natural. She had a natural voice, soft and cool like rain. It was contradictory, really, compared to her appearance and her reputation. Her voice was one of the many things he adored about her.

It was also one of the only things keeping him alive at the moment.

Distantly, he became aware of a sharp whine outside, one that made his insides freeze over.

Light filtered in as the top of the building was lifted like a lid, a set of glinting claws entered and dropped three screaming people inside around him. There was a snarled, "_Useless fleshlings!_" Then the hand pulled out and the roof was dropped.

"_OH MY GOD!_" someone shouted, "I'm gonna _die_! We're _all_ gonna _die_!"

Rex's vision began to focus as he was ripped away from his girl and the peace he'd found with her. The pain came back, a searing, red pain that pulsed like blood through him.

Another snapped, "_Shut up_, Leo!"

The first broke down into whimpers and sobs. The second's tone changed, turning worried, "Mikaela! Mikaela, where are you?"

A softer, girl voice answered from the other side of Rex, "I'm over here, Sam."

Rex blinked slowly, trying to find his voice to warn them.

The bastard watching them was mean as hell, the very same one, he remembered, that took Critter four years ago. Rex had pulled the same shit as these three, shouting and making a lot of noise. Skywarp wasn't as tolerant as Thundercracker.

The proof was in Rex's ribs.

Someone started moving, coming closer. The second voice, 'Sam', Rex was guessing, started up again, "Don't worry, Bee's gonna get us out of here."

"Bee's all the way back at base, Sam," Mikaela said sharply, "he doesn't know that we've been kidnapped."

"WHAT THE HELL!" Leo yelled, "I thought you said this alien crap was over! No, nonononononono, it's all just some whacked out dream. I'm back at home, putting together next year's calendar. No more aliens. No more robots. Just me and my kittens."

"You're the one that kept trying to expose them to the world!"

Fingers brushed against Rex's back, causing him to tense and suck in a sharp breath of air. The hand was snatched back. Mikaela asked, voice shrill, "Sam?"

"Sh..." Rex clenched his teeth as a wave of pain crashed through him. They all hushed, even this Leo. Rex swallowed harshly, clenching at his side. Sam got brave, "Who's there?"

"Shut," Rex stopped to take a breath, his voice was cracked and broken, and it sounded nothing like him, "the hell...up."

The silence that followed was stunned.

"Or that metal bastard...will shut you up...himself."

"Who are you?" Mikaela asked. Again, the fingers touched his back, "what's your name?"

"Doesn't...matter..." Rex sucked in more air, "dying...anyway..."

"Shit," someone hissed. More movement. A second hand reached out and landed on his shoulder, "Come on, man, talk. What-"

"I miss my girl," Rex interrupted, slowly closing his eyes, "She's strong...and beautiful...and I love her...I wish...I could see her...for real...instead of just...memories..."

The hand on his shoulder tightened, like the owner was taking firm hold of him and refusing to let go, "Stay with us."

"What's her name?" Mikaela scooted closer.

"Everyone calls her Shark," he smiled weakly, "because...she's not afraid to kick someone's ass...but her real name is...Rae. Raelynn."

"What's your name?" This time, it was Sam.

Rex kept going like he didn't hear him, "I thought...I told you morons...to shut the hell up...You can survive...Just long enough...Our Demi will come with Prime and the others..."

The one holding his shoulder tensed. Sam asked, shocked, "You know Optimus?"

"She'll save us...she always...does..." he was numb to the tears that started to run down his face, "big sister is coming...she won't leave us to die here...and she'll make sure that we get home...she flew all the way to fucking...Egypt...to bring us home..."

"You're one of the James kids, aren't you?"

"She's gonna...take care of us...she'll take us home...I just wish...I could see...my girl..." Rex faded, falling back into the depths of his mind, where Shark and his family were. And that's where he stayed, despite their attempts to keep him awake and talking.

* * *

><p><strong>BAHAHAHAHAAAA! Bet you didn't think I'd throw those three in! Nope, I haven't forgotten about them...<strong>

**Poor Rex. I feel so bad, putting him through this...Ah hell, I wonder how him and Leo are going to get along later? **

**I figured that Bumblebee would be talking to Sam about the autobot adventures or whatever whenever they hung out, so that's how Sam guessed that Rex was a 'James kid'. Anyways, hope you guys enjoy! Love you!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 24**

"What is this place?" Shark whispered, pale eyes wide as the autobot base came into view, "it looks like-"

"A giant robot alien structure," Gears finished, casting her a quick glance, "something out of a comic book?"

"Where the goat-fuck are we?" Shark asked, squinting, "who the hell do you hang out with?"

"Rex didn't ever tell you about Demona?" Critter asked from the backseat. Gears tensed slightly.

He called her by name. Not sister, not sis, not sissy. She raised her eyes to the mirror to look at him. Shark turned in the seat to look at him, "You guys keep bringing her up. This is your sister, right?"

When he didn't say anything, Gears huffed, "She's my daughter, my oldest. She's my baby girl, remember that."

"You make it sound like she's not human," the young woman scoffed, pushing a hand through her black hair. This time, neither of them answered her. Shark blinked.

She looked out the window as Arcee shot past to take the lead, "Who are these chicks?"

"Friends." Gears' tone said otherwise.

They finally pulled into the hangar. The massive dodge rumbled to a stop, Pockets' old Toyota pulling up beside them and nearly overflowing with blonde headed little boys.

Critter unbuckled, "Don't scream."

"Why would I..." Shark trailed off as movement drew her attention.

Demona was on two feet and was walking towards them, rose red armor gleaming. Attached to her shoulder like a big cute parrot was Sundance. Gears lifted a hand to wave, then turned her eyes to Shark.

Shark's mouth was open, her eyes about as wide as dinner plates. She nearly jumped out of her seat when the sounds of transforming robots came from both sides. Chromia and Arcee shifted forms, walking away with a little swing to their hips.

The only words that left her mouth was, "Oh...My...God."

Gears dropped down from the truck and shifted to the back door to help Critter down. Demona approached, footsteps silent despite her size and make. Gears called, "Hey, Dem."

"Hello," Demona answered softly, kneeling down beside them.

Shark almost tumbled out of the dodge. She took a wide step back, "_Thats _Demona? But she was-this isn't..." She stumbled and bent over, hands on her knees, "_shit..._this isn't...this isn't possible..."

Gears sent her a grin, "Welcome to the family, Shark!"

* * *

><p>Rex's half-closed brown eyes focused as light, blinding and burning against his skin, filtered in as the roof of their prison was lifted.<p>

He was ripped from his memories and forced back to reality again, back to the burning pain and the chilling numb. He blinked slowly as the sound of the other three getting to their feet and moving back reached him, sounding deafening to his ears.

Sam put himself in front of the other two, "What the hell do you-"

"_Silence!_" The seeker snarled. A second hissed, "Skywarp! You offlined one!"

Glinting claws reached inside. They looked a lot like an open bear trap to Rex, and as they neared, his heart beat louder in his ears. But all the jet did was poke at him. Unfortunately, the place he poked was the side Rex was trying to hold together.

He uncurled with a weak shout, lifting his hand long enough for the blood to start running down again.

"Don't touch him!" Mikaela snapped.

Rex ignored them, slapping both hands down on his wound. The mech corrected himself, "He's _near_ offlining. Starscream wants them alive, Skywarp."

"Then he should be guarding them himself instead of hunting for that slagging femme. I can't wait to watch the spirit leave her optics...to break her."

Rex clenched his teeth, feeling a wave of anger that wracked through his entire body, one that overpowered the pain and the cold, one that filled him with a new strength, albeit a small one. He clenched his teeth, and snarled, "You bastards can't break her. Demi has owned and wiped the floor with your asses. You girls can't do _shit _to her."

He grinned weakly, that insane gleam returning to his once bright brown eyes, "I'll die in peace in this hell hole knowing that she'll find you, someday, and rip your useless bitch-asses apart with her bare hands."

Skywarp reached down next, digging a claw into his calf until the wound was deep and wide, wet red rolling down and soaking his socks. The seeker growled, "Speak louder, _fleshling, _I can't hear you."

"She's a fucking hurricane in a glass jar, and as soon as that jar breaks, you're all going to die. And me? Well, I says, I'm gonna be laughing my happy ass off in the afterlife! I'm gonna tape the moment, and I'm going to rewind it and play it every fucking day."

Then, so suddenly he blacked out for a second, he was swept up into the air, caught in deadly, clenching claws. The thick metals pressed into his weakened body, threatening to shatter every inch of him. But Rex was still grinning. He found himself staring into the narrowed, burning crimson eyes of Skywarp.

"Hey! Let him go!" Sam shouted.

The seeker squeezed, and a sickening crack broke through the quiet like an explosion. Thundercracker snapped, "_Alive_, Skywarp!"

"I barely have to twitch my fingers," Skywarp whispered darkly, "and you're short, useless life will be over."

"Hurricane in a glass jar," Rex reminded, "you and your girlfriends are already dead."

The seeker simply glared back before he opened his claws and Rex went hurling back towards the ground. Rex landed face down, the shock of the impact freezing his body. He couldn't move. He didn't want to.

His eyes closed and his mind shut down, completely lost as the other three were lifted into the air after the two decepticons shared some _kind _words. The roof was dropped and darkness fell upon him. Alone once again.

* * *

><p><strong>'Hurricane in a glass jar'...Perfect description.<strong>

**BTW, I didn't put Carly in Mikaela's place because 1) This does NOT follow DOTM. And 2) I really did NOT like her. AT ALL. There's been moments when I wasn't too happy with Mikaela, but seriously...And that whole 'you're a bitch thing' with Megatron..._really_?**

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoy it. Love ya. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

"More of have been taken," Ratchet said with a soft vent, "Sam and Mikaela among them."

"Those are the kids that had the magic glasses, right?" Gears asked, faded green eyes turned down to the heavy scars on her hands. She slowly closed them into fists. It took a lot of effort though. Honestly, she wished she would recover from her suicidal assault on Skywarp four years ago. She was not the same woman. People feared her now, for her red, gnarled hands and the thick scars spider-webbing across her face. Even her sister had turned away the first time she'd seen her.

"Yes, Bumblebee's charges," his blue optics fell upon her and softened when he saw her staring at her scars, "Starscream is trying to divide our forces...He's separated them from Rex. Prime is sending out another team to retrieve them."

Gears sighed, lifting her hands to push through her hair as she leaned forward tiredly, "Rex...what is it with my kids and finding trouble all the time, Ratchet?"

"We're going to find him, Ariel," he promised, "all of them."

Gears turned her eyes to the doors as they slid open and her granddaughter came bounding inside. In one leap, the dragon was on the berth. Gears blinked, "What are you? A kangaroo?"

Sundance beamed at her, "Mimi, you're silly." She trotted over and dropped her head, which was nearly the size of Gears' chest, and poked her with her nose.

"Where's your momma?" Gears asked, raising a hand to run her fingers down one of those sleek horns, "and stop growing."

"Momma was trying really hard to stay up long enough to talk to you, but she was just too tired," the smile turned into a frown, "she's been recharging a lot lately. Daddy says she's not sick...but she's never recharged this much before. I'm really worried."

Again, Gears blinked. After a moment of thought, she said slowly, "That doesn't sound like her...Jolt's always been the one to crash when no ones looking."

Sundance settled beside her, flicking the end of her tail back and forth in content like a cat, "That's what I said...hey, mimi?"

"What, sweetie?"

"Whose that scary woman with silver optics?"

"That's Shark," Gears said, "she is kind of scary, isn't she?"

"Yeah...If I were Mud and Skidz, I wouldn't be bothering her."

The woman tensed, "What are you...Bothering her?"

* * *

><p>Shark pulled a hand through her hair, eyes turned down. She was finally alone in this hell hole, <em>away <em>from the big ass metal people, and _away _from the three little kids that and that blonde hillbilly Pockets was dating. _What was her name? Jo._

_God, I miss Rex._

Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest.

Shark was not like most women. She was famous on the streets of her hometown, the place where she found her name and her reputation. She loved no man. She trusted no man. She had been alone since the day of her birth and she had been determined to stay that way. When the man-child customers that got to comfortable with her while she was at work in the bar, she would sink her nails into their scalp and crush their face against the hard, smooth surface of the bar.

Some of the men she rejected had no problem with hitting a woman. Unfortunately for them, she had no problem beating their ass. The males in the territory learned she was off-limits. She was feared and admired. And she was perfectly fine with that life.

Then he came.

He was skinny and blonde and crazy, with a big mouth and the most insane set of eyes she'd ever seen.

She must have been one _stupid _girl back then, because she fell for him. Hard. And there was no stopping it, no matter how much she fought it. She had tossed two-hundred pound men out the door with a kick to the ass, she had dished out just as many scars as she received. She was the one no man could touch, the one that was incapable of affection.

She took one look at his eyes, just one, and all of that crumbled.

Because it wasn't his dumb jokes or his stupid grin. It was his eyes, the way how they seemed to be laughing hysterically on the surface, insane, crazy. But beneath that laughter was shattering darkness. Pain. Sorrow. Anger.

She had wanted nothing more than to take that darkness and fill it with light, even though she had just met the bastard.

And Shark, who loved and trusted no one, gave what was left of her heart to him. He loved her, and she loved him. They'd been inseparable ever since.

But now he was gone. She was alone again.

"Where are you?" she whispered out loud, closing her pale eyes.

"Ooooh, 'Flap, Rex has been gettin' his groove on with the ladies!"

"What yous talkin' about, Skidz? He ain't said nothin' about a lady-friend."

Shark narrowed her eyes and turned, "Get the hell away from me."

"Oh, she's fiesty!"

She searched for something to beat them with, but was saved when a trio of screaming, blonde headed boys came running across the floor towards the two. Both of the robots took on a horrified look and scrambled like headless chickens as the kids fell upon them with a great battle-cry.

Shark blinked at them, "Damn." _Gives a whole new meaning to 'raised in a barn'._

* * *

><p><strong>Glad I got some more of Shark in there...or her 'worried' side, anyway. *cackles* I've got an idea of how to introduce the part of her that earned the name Shark. I just need a victim...<strong>

**I'm going to try to get more of Jo's brothers in there...theres three; Dean, Carter, and Slade. And they're insane. **

**This is probably all for today. Hope you enjoy. Love ya.**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

"There are few of us left," Ghost started, turning frozen blue optics upon the line of bright autobots, each folded down into their alternate forms.

Demona stood a ways away, arms crossed over her chest. Her light red optics were turned down, soft, as Jo entertained her three brothers, letting them chase her between the femmes toe-claws. Her attention was split, between keeping tabs on Sundance who was off with Jetfire, listening to Ghost, watching Jo and her family, and sending feelings of strength and faith to her mate.

Jo climbed up onto one of her claws, making herself comfortable. She leaned down and lifted the youngest of the three, who was a giggling,squirming mess of toddler.

Briefly, Demona reflected over the past few years. When she had first met Jo, the girl had been afraid of her. It was only after the adventure to Egypt that she had begun to see the autobots as more than 'alien monsters'. Now she trusted them, Demona the most, enough to let her younger brothers loose around her.

"Our forces are being spread thin, and for the sake of breakable, useless organic creatures," Ghost continued, "things really have come apart..."

Demona's spark tightened with anger. Her optics lost the soft look and fixed on the black armored femme, "These 'breakable, useless, organic creatures' are our allies, my friends."

"You have friends, decepticon?" Her tone was mocking, "you, of all _autobots _here, should know not to put your faith in such fragile things."

"I am _not _a tool of war," Demona narrowed her optics, "and as fragile as they are, there are some that are full of more spirit and more compassion then you could even comprehend."

"You're a fool, Demona."

Demona returned to watching the humans, all four of them completely oblivious tot he conversation. The other two boys were piled up beside Jo now, the oldest was busy studying the nicks and scars in her armor. Like his sister, it had taken him a while to get comfortable around them, and also like her, he was most comfortable with Demona.

He turned bright blue organic optics up to her then, blinking. Slowly, a small smile pulled at his lips. Then he turned and jumped down. Jo promptly scolded him for doing so.

"I think we're becoming friends," Demona said. She caught the femme turn and send her a strange look. Demona's optics were still narrowed when she turned them to the femme again, "You called me by designation that time, not, 'decepticon' or 'abomination'."

"I refuse to ally myself with the-"

"With the creation of Megatron, founder and leader of the decepticons," Demona cut in, "I am _nothing _like him. How many times do I need to make that clear?"

"A leopard can't change it's spots," she narrowed her optics, "no matter what faction you're in or who your so-called friends are, his energon, his spark, is inside you. His rage, his hate. You can't escape it. You can't change it."

"How can you be so sure? You don't know anything about me."

"I watched Megatron spiral out of control, piece by piece, I watched him destroy my sister from the inside out, and I watched him drive an entire species to it's knees. That's all I need to know. You can't change who you are."

"I already have," Demona said shortly, "I will suffer an offlining in flames and darkness by Megatron's hand before I go back to what I was."

The humans slid off her toe-claws. The middle aged one took off with a yell. The others followed, including Jo who was yelling at them to come back. Demona watched them until they left before she turned to leave. She needed to talk to Gears. She had finally recharged enough that she could stand up without becoming dizzy, and she had planned on going to see her adopted human family.

A black hand landed against her upper chest, freezing her in place. Ghost's face-plates were emotionless, optics as cold as ever. She said, tone dark, "Prime is a moron for trusting you, all of them are. I will be there when you show your true colors, _Demona, _and I will be the one to strike you down."

Demona closed her fingers around the femme's wrist tightly. Rage burned through her, her spark seemed to explode with a new need to protect. The sparkling growing in her chest was the first to come to her processor. She pulled her arm back, "_Don't_ touch me."

She dropped her arm and stepped past, on her way to the med bay.

Ratchet was hurriedly packing tools and supplies into his subspace when Demona arrived. Whatever anger that had been storming inside her spark faded when she saw him. She stopped in the doorway, and watched. Without looking away to acknowledge her, Ratchet explained, "Starscream attacked Irohinde's team. The blasted old mech blew out his knee in the battle-Primes sending me out to attend to him."

Demona blinked, "You're our last able mech."

He vented sharply, "I know that, youngling. These seekers are doing a slagging good job of separating us...each child has been taken to a different corner of the country, and each one is wounded. There is no way to be sure of an attack or a trap...we have no choice but to do this."

"A fresh team of mechs just left," Demona continued, "There's..."

"As much as it pains my spark," Ratchet paused to look her in the optic, "I know I can rely on Ghost. I know she's been nothing but hostile towards you, but she is a true autobot at spark and will readily give her spark to defend base. You and your sparklings are safe. Wheeljack is still recovering, but he can hold his own at this point, and there's also Jetfire..."

He trailed off as he went back to doing his thing. Demona's processor slowed down a little to work through his words, "You expect me to trust Ghost? She just told me that she'd offline me..." Then a certain word stuck out to her. She crossed her arms over her chest, and repeated, "Sparklings?"

"I know you're carrying," Ratchet cast her a soft look, "did you think you could hide it from an old medic like me? You are not the first carrying femme I've seen. I knew it the moment Sundance told me you were recharging more than usual. I'm guessing that you're not far."

"No," she stepped inside, "we've only known for a few days now."

"Have you told anyone?"

She shook her head. He started to clean up, "You should make it a point to share with Optimus. He cares deeply about you and Sundance, he'd want to know."

"I know." Demona followed him back out when he was finished, "Be careful, Ratchet."

He placed a hand on her shoulder, and unlike before, when her spark had raged at Ghost, she felt nothing but calm. This mech had pieced her back together more than once, and was one of the first of the autobots to call her comrade. She trusted him.

"Don't worry, Demona. We'll bring them home safely. Just focus on keeping everyone in line here and making sure that sparkling is healthy."

She inclined her head and watched him make his way down the hall.

Not so long after, she found Gears and Pockets. Critter was off somewhere on his own.

Pockets stood up and approached her, running a hand over one of her toe-claws, "More of the autobots left today."

"Yes," Demona clarified, "Ratchet among them."

"So who do we have left?" Gears asked.

"Jetfire, Wheeljack, and Ghost," Demona answered quietly. She activated her holoform and hugged her human mother when she huffed.

Gears squeezed her tight with her scarred arms, "Something doesn't feel right, Demi, and it's not just Rex and the others."

"I know."

* * *

><p><strong>WOW...talk about a late freaking update. <strong>

**Sorry guys, I kind of dropped off the face of the earth for a while. I STILL haven't caught up on reviews, and I now have to catch up on college...I'm back, but chapters won't be as frequent as before because I'm having serious problems with my vision(words crawling across the page, blurry, dimming of light) topped off with some massive headaches. The only good thing that came out of it all was a new relationship with one of the sweetest guys I've EVER seen...**

**ANYWAY, sorry about unloading my sad story on you guys...Sorry there's nothing new, but we ARE building up to something. Next update should have some _goooood _crap. **

**Again, sorry...love you guys. Hope you enjoy.**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story, belongs to me. **


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

_'Closing in on Skywarp's location', _the junior medic's voice echoed over the public communications link. Paradox cut across the earth, the twins close behind her. Others reported in, but it was the words of Demona's sparkmate that continued to cycle through her processor.

_Skywarp has the human boy designated Rex. Thundercracker has taken Witwicky and his companions and separated them...each to a different corner of the country. _Her spark was painfully tight in her chest. _Skywarp. Thundercracker. Two seekers have been located. The autobot forces are split. Starscream has yet to show his face...Starscream...Where is that useless slag of a mech?_

She felt as though she was missing something, and the strain it was putting on her processor was enough to drive anyone insane. She kept trying to create some reason, some piece to the puzzle that would make it complete.

Her thinking was interrupted when Sundance and Demona flashed across her processor. The thought that Demona, her own creation, was already a parent herself...A bother 'mother' than what Paradox could ever hope to be. _Demona, Sundance...at base..._

It was then that the missing pieces were found. Paradox slid to a stop, a cloud of sand and dirt rising to hide her form. The other two shot past before they realized she had stopped.

_'Hey! What are you...' _Sideswipe started, cutting himself off when she abruptly pulled a one-eighty and sped off in a different direction. She ignored the two, focusing solely on getting back to base. Panic wrapped around her like a gnarled hand, squeezing her spark.

_Forces split. Starscream missing...Demona, Sundance behind...Slag it all._

* * *

><p>"Jetfire!" Sundance sang, bounding into the sunlight. She folded her wings against her body and beamed up at him. Those old, wise crimson optics fell upon her, the old Seeker smiled back. He turned towards her, "Did you come to hear the rest of my story?"<p>

"Yes!" She exclaimed, then paused and tilted her head, "but can we fly first? Mommas recharging again..."

In answer he straightened up and lifted his cane, "Once around base, then."

Sundance grinned real wide and jumped up off the ground and spiraled up into the air. Jetfire waited until she was up high enough to catch the stronger winds before he followed. Sundance began to sing, a soft but clear sound that eased the old mech's spark. She did circles around his larger form and pulled off tricks and flips, things he remembered doing back when he was young and strong.

He watched her become brave, straying farther away from his form. It wasn't until they were completing their round that his spark filled with worry and tension. On impulse, his battle routines kicked on and he pulled up higher so he had a better visual. Sundance paused briefly, casting him a questioning look. She glided closer.

A streak of silver sliced across the bright blue sky like a dagger, pale and deadly. Before Jetfire could react, the mech had transformed in a flurry of gray and black alloys, deadly claws stretching open and slamming into his chest. Jetfire gave a surprised shout and tumbled back. Starscream cast him a wicked grin before he turned to Sundance.

"Fly, youngling!" Jetfire ordered. But the sparkling was frozen, red optics wide with fear. "Sundance!"

* * *

><p>Sundance had never really experienced fear.<p>

There was guilt when she got in trouble with her creators or Optimus, there was the rush when she hunted Ironhide. But she had never felt raw, crippling fear.

Until now.

Sundance was caught in the blood-red optics of the silver mech, his armor twisted and warped from old scars. He was _huge, _not quite Jetfire's size but still very big. There were tears and rips in his wings, held tense behind him.

"Fly youngling!" Jetfire was shouting, "Sundance!"

Her spark was exploding with fear, so much so that it was a roar in her audio receptors. Her processor was numb and hard at work all at once, trying to come up with some way out of this. Instincts shouted at her to run, to flee, but she could not. She was stuck there, unable to move. Inside, she was screaming for her father, her mother, Optimus, Ironhide, _anyone_...

"Hello, sparkling," the decepticon growled, reached for her. At the last possible minute, Sundance finally broke free from his gaze and turned. She dropped from her spot and pulled her wings in close to her body for a sharp dive, the winds whistling past her. Above it all, she could hear the jet laugh. For a big mech, he was super fast. She caught the tips of his claws coming towards her from the right. She made a split-second decision and jerked away, barely managing to escape.

"Momma!" She cried, rushing towards base. She felt a sharp tug on her spark as her femme creator reacted, coming awake immediately. She continued to pull at Sundance's spark, and a strong wave of rage and protectiveness came over her. Demona spoke to her in feeling, not in words, _**I'm coming.**_

Sundance pulled back, holding on as tight as she possibly could to her mother. The hangar was in sight, if only she could make it...

A flash of rose red below, and hope and joy soared through her. She moved faster, angling her wings to increase her speed...

She had just enough time to register Starscream's claws before they raked across her body, cutting through her armor like paper and damaging her wings. She screamed and fell, body hurling towards the earth.

* * *

><p><strong>Douche bag...I have a feeling that once Demona gets her hands on him again, she's not going to show mercy and just take him as a prisoner. That bitch is going down...<strong>

**Anyway, I wrote Jetfire a little out of character...but it's been awhile so I need to get familiar with him again. Hope yuo guys enjoy...Now I gotta sit down and do about four assignments for school. Yay.**

**Demona and her family, Paradox, and the story belongs to me. **


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl as her optics fell upon the twisting form of her sparkling, hurdling through the air at an unreal speed and growing closer and closer to the earth.

Demona had never felt so much raw fear. It was so strong and so sharp that it actually hurt. Part of it was coming from the open bond with Sundance. The little dragon, although hurt and unable to save herself, was clenching tight to her mother with her spark. The other half was Demona's alone, and it was the strongest of the two. Every inch of her frame was straining to reach her creation in time. She dropped down and shifted into her land alternate in one motion, hitting the ground hard enough to send a shock of pain through her. Warnings went off in her processor, alerting her that she was putting her joints under too much stress.

She didn't care.

The fear escalated into wrath when she caught the glint of mutilated silver in the sky, closing in on Sundance. She pushed herself harder and shifted forms so fast that her frame nearly overheated from it, hands open and raised.

Starscream was swiping a hand down to snatch Sundance out of the air but Demona was there first. The second the sparkling's weight landed in her hand, she twisted in the air and deployed the blades on her other arm. In one lethal strike, the seeker's arm from the elbow down was severed from his body. Demona landed and slid back. Starscream landed in an ungraceful heap on the earth, grasping at his injury and snarling curses and insults.

Sundance uncurled, trembling so much that her damaged armor clanked together, and stood up weakly to pull at Demona's chest plates to get into the safety of her carrying hold.

"_Demona!_" Starscream spat, "your life ends today!"

"Don't let him, momma," Sundance whispered, "don't let him hurt me!"

Demona willed her armor to part, and the dragon scrambled inside. It was a tight fit since Sundance's second frame was large compared to her first one, but she managed to turn and settle. She pulled herself in a tight ball of red armor, pressed as close to Demona's spark and the hidden spark of her sibling as she could get.

Starscream began to go into detail, giving her the list of all the things he was going to do before he ripped her spark from her chest. Demona sank deep into her rage, sealing her chest plates again. Burning red optics fell upon him. _"STARSCREAM!"_

Before the mech could answer, she was upon him. Her claw blades found purchase without effort, tearing through his armor like it was tin foil. One wing fell when he turned to defend himself. The other crumbled beneath her fist in the same swing. Her toe-claws tore gouges in the earth as she moved, twisting and turning without pause, never giving him the chance to step back and regroup.

Curses and insults became pleas and cries of pain, but she was deaf to it all. '_DESTROY,' _instincts and thoughts screamed, '_No mercy!'_

His free hand managed to tear deep into her leg. She shoved her blades into his chest, hauling him up off the ground to hold him above her. Her red optics focused on his flickering gaze. She whispered, "You're lucky I am nothing like my creator."

"M-mercy, Demona..."

"No," she clenched the blades. They slid through his body easily until they were fatally close to his spark, "Megatron let you live despite all your mistakes and faults. I'm going to tear your spark to pieces."

She began to squeeze, grazing the protective casing around his spark. It was then that something shifted inside her spark, something old and evil and hated. Her optics widened and turned up in time to see a second decepticon drop out of the sky. This one was massive, with wide, old wounds crisscrossing his front. His armor was silver and thick. His serrated dentals were bared in a sick smile as his blood-red optics glared down at her.

The anger drained out of Demona. She kept her hold on Starscream, who slackened and said, "L-lord Megatron..."

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry it's a short one. <strong>

**I didn't go into detail on the so-called 'battle' because, obviously, Demona was pissed. I figure that the whole thing wasn't exactly thought out-she just moved out of her anger so its all just really fast-paced. **

**And how Megatron managed to pop up out of the blue without anyone seeing him, I have no idea...same goes for why the remaining autobots haven't coming rushing to Demona's aid. :/ Couch potatoes...**

**ANYWAY, there are two ways this story could go. Now, I'm not going to pull a Bay and start killing off everything in sight, but there will probably be a death or two in the story with either way, so heads up. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

The anger kept burning in her spark, but a new, old fear was quickly rising to overpower it. Demona stared at the massive mech, flashes of her youth and of previous battles darting through her processor. Her claws clenched inside Starscream's chest, causing the mech to convulse with a agonized whine.

Megatron smiled down at her, a sick, twisted expression she had come to hate. Her red optics narrowed.

"Demona," he said, voice bearing a ghost of strain from his wounds, "be merciful."

"If you come closer," she snarled, "you will suffer the same fate."

He chuckled darkly, the claws of one hand clenching, "I do not fear you, creation."

Her optics widened when he abruptly swung down with the same set of claws. She dropped Starscream and turned her body so that he hit her in the side and not the chest, protecting her young. The knife-like edges of his claws left deep gouges in her thick armor, and the force behind the blow sent her flying backwards.

She angled her body, her back taking the damage when her body broke the wall of the hangar. She rolled through the rubble and dirt inside, lifting a hand to press to her chest plates when Sundance squirmed. Someone shouted in alarm, "Demona!"

Quickly, she cast her optics down to Gears and Critter. Both of their organic optics were wide with shock and fear. Gears rushed forward, "Demona, what the hell-"

"_Megatron_!" Ghost spat, forming a blaster on one arm as she charged out through the whole Demona's body had made. Wheeljack wasn't far behind, carrying some odd-ball weapon she'd never even seen before.

"Shit!" Gears cursed. She spun around to yell at the other humans present, "Jo! Get the boys the hell out of here! Go to the med bay, _now_!"

The blonde haired girl nodded and grabbed Shark by the sleeve and shouted for her brothers.

Demona opened her chest plates, pulling Sundance out, "Gears, take her, I won't risk losing her!"

Shots were fired outside, someone began to scream in pain. The earth shook.

"Momma! No! Don't leave me!" Sundance cried, clinging to her hand. Gears wrapped her arms around her, "Come on, baby, mommas gonna be fine!"

"I will come back for you, Sundance," Demona promised when the sparkling continued to struggle, "I won't leave you."

The dragon stilled, staring. She whispered, "I love you, momma. Please come back!"

"My spark goes with you," Demona replied, "now go!"

Sundance turned and stumbled off as fast as she could, Gears keeping up with her.

Her chest plates snapped closed and she rose to her feet, claw blades spinning. She was tensing to plunge back into the battle when a small hand landed on one of her toes. Her optics fell to land on Critter, who was staring up at her with pained green optics. He whispered, "You promised, Dem."

"I don't break promises," she answered, "follow mother, get to safety."

He wheeled around and started off. She turned back to the battle, only to find the leader of decepticons missing.

There was a sharp tug on her spark, pulling up. In one motion, she cleared the distance between her and Critter and dropped to cover him with her body. Above her the ceiling caved in beneath the weight of her mech creator. He came crashing down, heavy feet shattering the concrete. Critter bent in his wheel chair and covered his head with his arms. Demona scooped him up in her hands and tensed to roll away.

Deadly claws reached down and sunk deep beneath her armor, puncturing cables and slicing delicate wiring. Megatron lifted her like she was no more than a sparkling.

Acting on impulse, Demona dropped her brother. The distance between her and the earth was short then, so he didn't have much of a fall. _Run!_ Her spark shouted at him, _Run, Alex!_

But he was frozen, staring up at Megatron with wide eyes. Demona twisted with a growl, claw blades spiraling around her wrists. She fixed her gaze on Megatron's old wounds, the very same ones she had given him four years ago.

Megatron squeezed, sending a blinding wave of pain through her. He raised her higher. Her optics dimmed.

"Demona!" the boy shouted. Megatron turned his optics to him.

_Fragging human..._She clenched her fists beneath her blades and swung down, cutting deep into the mech's shoulder. Snarling, he threw her across the hangar.

This time Demona landed on her feet, shoving her claw blades through the concrete and into the earth to stop from slamming into another wall. She pulled free, transforming one arm into a cannon.

Her optics widened as he plunged his claws into the ground, forming a sharp, impenetrable cage around Critter. _Slag. Fragging moron I am...of course he's going to-_

The claws slid through the concrete until they were crushing the boy's wheel chair. Critter yelled out in pain, head thrown back and body shaking violently. Megatron's smiled again, "These humans are so fragile...I could snap every bone in his body with one squeeze."

Demona felt her spark freeze over. She fell still. Megatron chuckled, "You know what I came for."

Demona said nothing. Slowly, her claw blades slid back into her wrist armor. The armor making up the blaster broke apart and reformed back into her hand. She straightened, despite the throbbing pain in her back.

"Demona, don't-" Critter's plea broke out into a scream when Megatron's claws twitched.

"Enough!" Demona snapped, "I yield."

The smile shifted into a feral grin.

* * *

><p><strong>First, let me apologize for a LATE update...if any of you are still following me. Don't really have an excuse to give you, I just got carried away with life. <strong>

**SECOND, let me apologize for a crappy LATE update. It's been awhile since I've visited Demona and them...everyone seems out of character and the chapter is pretty sloppy. I gotta find my rhythm all over again, but thats fine, because I'm not going to just quit in the middle of the story. **

**Anyway, again, SORRY. **

**Love to my readers(if I have any left)**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

"_Alex_!"

Gears stumbled through the wreckage. Panic gripped her heart like a giant black hand, squeezing the life from her, "_Alec_! Boys!"

Jo was across the hangar, hurriedly digging through what remained of the ceiling. The oldest of her little brothers was right beside her, helping. Shark was searching outside.

"Boys! Where are you!"

Her eyes widened when Jo straightened and held up the crushed wheel of a wheel chair. Gears stayed frozen, her insides turning as cold as ice.

"No," she whispered, tripping through the rubble to the blonde, "no, no, no, no...ALEX!"

She dropped and started to dig.

"He's not there," a metallic voice stated, echoing in her hollow mind. Gears kept at it though. She had to find them, she had to find her boys. Jo hesitated, tears in her dark blue eyes.

The autobot mech named Wheeljack stepped in through a giant hole in one of the walls, "Miss, there's no one there. My scanners aren't picking up anything."

"Then where the fuck are my boys!" Gears snapped, glaring up at him, "where are my kids!"

Wheeljack fell quiet. The black femme was behind him, with the most heartless set of eyes Gears had ever seen.

"You're _boy _was taken," she said, tone emotionless, "Megatron took him when that useless pit-spawned abomination surrendered."

Gears just stared.

Her brain worked through the femmes words slowly. She didn't move, even when Wheeljack turned to send the other a harsh look. At first, there was a cold shock. _Taken._ She said _taken. _Flashes of the battles on base four years ago began to filter past her mind's eye, images and memories that she hated. Her youngest son, spread out broken and almost lifeless in the palm of that stupid fucking jet's hand. How she had gone, as the twins said it, 'slagging berserk' and wrecked havoc on his body.

The shock molded into agony. It was a familiar one, one she had only felt twice and hoped to never feel again. It turned and burned in her heart, tearing holes and canyons like some hell-fire dragon.

And the agony passed on to pure, blackening rage. Because this stupid bitch was insulting her daughter, and NO ONE insulted her daughter.

Before she could process what she was doing, she yanked the wheel from Jo's hands and threw it, as hard as she possibly could. The wheel angled up like a frizz-bee and smacked the black robot right in the forehead. She snarled, "Don't you _EVER _talk about my baby girl like that again! I will _end you_! You don't know shit about Demona, so don't say shit!"

The autobot looked stunned, eyes wide. Gears huffed, turning her attention to Wheeljack, "Is it true? Did that evil bastard..."

"Yes...Megatron used your son, Alex, I think, to make Demona surrender...and he took them both."

The anger left her in one breath, leaving her empty and numb. The feeling left her legs, and she started to collapse. Jo stepped forward and caught her, pulling her close and wrapping both arms around Gears' body to hold her up. Jo turned her eyes up to them, "Where's Alec?"

"I don't know."

"Alec..." Gears whispered, "God, where are my kids...wheres my babies..."

"We'll find them," Jo promised, voice breaking, "we'll find all of them."

Gears leaned into her, squeezing her eyes closed, "This isn't...happening..."

* * *

><p>Her body hurt.<p>

Every step sent a shock of pain through her. One of her sides was torn wide open, armor bent and shredded. A wing was mangled, hanging down and dragging on the floor because too many cables and wiring had been cut.

But Sundance made herself walk.

What few human soldiers that stayed on base were rushing back and forth, shouting at one another. None of them stopped when they saw her. There was only a passing glance, then they were gone.

Smoke was still rising from the hangar when Sundance made her way inside. She stopped just inside, scanning wide, frightened optics over the destruction.

_Where is she? _

She strained to spot anything red, hoping with her entire spark that her mother would be there, standing beside the other autobots and tending to everyone's injuries since her daddy and Ratchet were gone. But Her mother wasn't there. All that remained was flakes of her rose red armor, scattered across the rubble.

She continued to look, optics scanning...until they passed across the giant hole Demona had made in the wall. She froze with fear, trembling.

There, directly in her line of sight on the other side of the hangar, was the crumbled pieces of the silver mech that had ripped through her in the skies. Starscream. A decepticon.

Her creators were trying to reach her, to calm her, but they both felt so far away...

"Sundance!" Someone called. She didn't reply. She couldn't even move.

Someone tumbled towards her, and soon the scarred arms of her mimi were wrapped around her. Sundance finally tore away from the seeker, dropping to the ground in a painful heap of sparkling. She looked at the human, "Mimi, where's momma?"

But her mimi was crying, and she wouldn't answer. She just pulled as much of Sundance as she could into her lap and held on.

* * *

><p><strong>:'( <strong>

**Love you guys. **

**Demona and her family, Ghost, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39**

Demona hit the ground, hard. She shifted to get back up, but the glinting claws of her mech creator slammed into her body, shoving her back down. He dropped the boy, making no attempt to be gentle. Critter met the earth with a muffled shout.

Wrath flared up inside her, although it wasn't all her's. As pissed as she was about all that had happened, it was Jolt's rage that was seizing her spark. The mech was livid. She'd never felt such dark anger from him.

Demona reached out towards her brother, but Megatron closed his claws around her neck and lifted her off the ground, "I've waited a long time for this, Demona. I'm going to make you suffer for your betrayal."

The other decepticons assembled here watched with varying expressions of amusement or curiosity. Some, she'd never seen before. These were the ones that seemed to have questions, but none stepped forward or interrupted their leader. They all knew better.

Her spark split in her chest. Half of her, the warrior, raged and screamed for her to attack. The other half, the guardian, held back. She _knew _why Megatron brought the boy. She _knew _why he hadn't killed him back in the hangar.

_If I fight, Alex dies. But...if I don't..._

_He brought me here to offline me._

Megatron stopped mid-sentence, optics widening slightly. Demona cursed vividly in her head when his gaze fell from her face to rest on her chest plates, over her growing sparkling. _Slag._

Demona wrenched free, ignoring the sharp strain it put on her throat cables and moved back. The moment she did, the sand around Critter, who was unconscious, exploded outward. Scorponok, armor littered with scars and old wounds, shot out of the earth. The sunlight glinted off his damaged body as he slammed down above the boy, claws snapping shut mere feet away from Critter's head.

Demona froze, forcing her claws to stay hidden beneath the layers of armor around her wrists. Her toe claws dug deep into the earth in anger. She warned, "If you touch him, I will _blast_ you into the _darkest_ corner of the _pit!_"

Her attention snapped back to Megatron as he approached. He said, tone almost quiet, "What are you hiding?"

Demona shifted back a step. The wrath blazed brighter, turning against her. The warrior part of her raged to be released.

_Not yet. _

Demona's optics darkened, shifting from the guardian white to the usual light red color. The cables in her legs were tight, joints clenched. She could feel Megatron prodding at her through the bond harshly, trying to hack his way in. But she had her guard up this time, and Jolt immediately encased her spark as well, thickening the shield. Prime was there too, supporting her in the same way.

The leader of the autobots was also angry, although it was more of a quiet rage, the kind that burned slow deep in the spark. He had reacted to her capture instantly, before Jolt, even. He'd reached through to her in a silent promise to find her.

Demona pulled back another step, body slung low in a defensive crouch. She had her body angled so that her shoulder was facing Megatron, protecting her sparkling. Distantly, the thought passed through her processor, _How do I get myself into these situations?_

She was caught between surrendering to save her brother and fighting to protect her sparkling.

Demona shifted back until she was forced to stop when a set of different claws came crashing down on her shoulder. This mech was _massive_, with frozen optics.

"_Soundwave_!" Megatron snapped. The mech turned his gaze to the decepticon leader without a sound.

Demona was managing to hold herself up beneath the weight of his hand, but just barely. Aside a crushing strength, there was something...deadly about this one, and it wasn't the fact that he was a decepticon or even a big decepticon. Her core chilled the second he'd touched her.

She wasn't sure what disturbed her most though. The almost alien chill that was starting to course through her, a chill she _knew_ was coming from this Soundwave, or the way how Megatron was now looking at her. Megatron's voice was without the edge of command or rage. It was almost...pleased, "Be gentle. I wouldn't want you to damage my new little soldier."

The anger and fighting spirit went out like a light. Dread filled the emptiness it left behind. She could only stare at her mech creator with wide optics.

_Primus, no._

* * *

><p><strong>O.O Boys better get their asses over there soon. <strong>

**Anyway, I'm so freakin glad I managed to push on to this point. You know how it feels when you have this badass, amazing idea for a plot and you plan it all out, you just don't know how to get there? That was kinda what it was for this story from chapter 1 and up. Everythings beginning to come to me now, so things should be a lot more smoother. **

**Real quick about Soundwave. I loved the way how they made him look in DOTM, but I wanted to make him one of those huge, big ass mechs like what he was in G1, so that's why he's so big...**

**Also, I am responding to reviews again. However, since it's been so long and there's so many, I'm starting from Sept. 15 and working up from there. So if you have any questions that you asked before hand, I'll be happy to answer them for you now. So sorry, again, for procrastinating. It gets me no where, really.**

**Love to the readers! I hope you enjoyed it!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40**

"This isn't very wise!" Wheeljack tried, "Ghost-"

The black autobot took a running leap, twisting through the air as her body rearranged back into her land alternate. She hit the ground hard and sent up a wake of dirt and ash as she took off, leaving them behind.

Now there was just an injured inventor and an ancient veteran left to guard base.

Jo, holding her youngest brother in her arms, glared after her, "I really don't like her."

"Nobody does," Wheeljack added with a sigh, "she's a slagging fool. Optimus won't be happy when he hears that she abandoned base."

He turned concerned blue optics down upon here, "Have you found the boy?"

An agonized expression filled Jo's face. She couldn't bring herself to answer, or even look at the mech. Instead she looked down at her brother. Her brother's were her strength. When the world was shattering around her, she only needed to look to them and she'd know that every thing would be okay. _It had to be okay. _

The odd mech knelt slowly beside her, "You care about him, don't you?"

"I love Alec," Jo said softly, forcing herself to look up at him, "when mom started to get worse...I didn't know what to do. We didn't have a working car, and we were outside city limits...so I called him. In the middle of the night. And he got up and drove over, loaded all of us up, and took us to the hospital so we could get help. He's the only one who has ever done anything like that for me before. He stayed up there all night. He never left my side. But...I can't even find him...and we've looked every where...Gears is a mess. I thought she got bad before, when the seekers attacked base and Alex went missing...but this...she's just gone."

He was quiet.

"Can you hear or sense him anywhere? Demona could always find him. Could you...?"

He shook his head, "I've been searching too, but I can't locate him."

_Not what I wanted to hear._

His voice took on an almost cautious edge, shifting subject carefully, "This Demona...you humans seem to favor her over everyone else."

Jo cast up a weak smile, "Demona is like a protective big sister. If any of us is...hurt...she's there. Did you know that she left all the autobots behind and flew to egypt to face Megatron alone so she could save Alex? I was afraid of her at first...but now she's sort of become my guardian, too. And Rex's. She's never hurt us. Gears thinks of her like she's her own daughter..."

She blinked and turned away when the oldest of her brothers came running towards her with wide blue eyes. He was clutching something in his hand, and there was a look of hope on his face.

"Slade," Jo began, kneeling so she was his height when he reached her, "what..."

The boy pushed something on a rough string in her hands before almost collapsing in exhaustion. He huffed and puffed as Jo shifted the youngest to her knee. She opened her hand, eyes widening when she realized just what she was holding. On the string was a chunk of some thick, rose red metal. She recognized it instantly.

The metal was a piece of Sundance's armor from her first frame. Jo wasn't sure on the details, but she knew that it had chipped off of the now not-so-little dragon's horn when she'd taken a daring leap from the rafters in Gears' shop. Sundance had gotten a good scolding from just about everyone, from a hyperventilating Gears to the boys and the sparkling's shocked but relieved parents. Relieved because it had been her only injury.

As Jo had heard from Critter, if not for Pockets Sundance would've have suffered a worse injury and may have even been shut down in a stasis lock. She had hit her horns on the way down and was going to land pretty hard on the concrete floor from about eighteen feet in the air. But Pockets had jumped up real fast and taken the damage for her by catching her.

He had nearly gotten himself a concussion, but the whole ordeal only brought everyone in the family closer. And Sundance had given Pockets the piece that had chipped off from her horn, telling him that it would keep them close.

He'd never taken it off.

Slade stared at her with a raised eyebrow, like he was waiting for her to catch on.

"This...this belongs to Alec," she closed her fingers over it, feeling the soft cord between her fingers. It was snapped at one end. Her gut clenched, and her voice raised a little as it finally hit her. She swung around to Slade, "where did you find this?"

"That psycho Shark ladys been digging around outside the big building thing, and she found this and tossed it. Isn't this the necklace he got from Sundance?"

Jo got to her feet and put the sleeping toddler in his arms before she took off in the direction he'd waved his arm in. Wheeljack was right beside her.

Jo dropped beside Shark and all but pushed the scary girl out of the way so she could start pulling away chunks of broken concrete. Wheeljack ran a hand over the mound and scooped an entire layer off. Jo froze when she caught a patch of broken tan skin. "Alec!" She cried, digging faster, "Alec!"

Shark saw and started helping. Soon they were hauling the broken, battered body of the older James boy out of the destruction. Tears were coming from Jo's eyes. She pulled him into her lap and bowed her head to his chest, ear down. She held her breath and strained to hear.

_Please...please, please, please don't be...don't leave me..._

She waited...and waited...

But whatever hope that had been soaring through her came crashing down to her toes. She couldn't hear anything, and his skin felt strange. It was almost chilled. She pulled back to look at him, lifting a hand to push through his thick red hair. _Dear God, no..._

The gravel and rock shifted around them when Wheeljack abruptly dropped to one knee, "He's still alive!"

"What the hell!" Shark snapped, "he doesn't even look like a damn human anymore! How could he be alive?"

Jo let herself and Pockets be gently scooped up into the autobot's hands, but not before she shot at Shark, "He's a James. Every single one of them is damn near impossible to kill."

The statement was unexpected, even to Jo, and the force it was spoken with also. But when she thought about it, it was as close to the truth as she could get when describing Gears and her kids.

Four years ago, when she had just been getting to know Pockets and Rex, when they'd been kidnapped by the decepticons. Pockets had been torn wide open. The wound had been wide and deep. He actually had to hold the injury closed so his insides wouldn't come spilling out into the dirt.

Gears, going insane when Skywarp had taken Critter. She had hauled her already injured body up his leg and to his hip, tearing out her own nails and slicing her hands to the bones trying to rip through him. The energon that had seared the layers off her arms and caused her eyes to become almost useless. She had been crushed and burned and torn wide open.

Critter. He'd survived being kidnapped and kept hostage by Megatron across the earth in the devastatingly hot sands of Egypt. Being stuck alone with them, having his legs broken somewhere in the process and having to suffer years full of nightmares after.

Even Demona, although she wasn't human, was considered a 'James kid' by now, and she had defied death. More than once. Jo had heard the stories, and had been amazed by them.

Every single one of them. Each one of them had looked death in the eye and come back even stronger than they were before. _Impossible to kill. _

She rested her forehead against his and pressed her fingers to his neck. Again, she waited. The time passed, and she was on the verge of giving up when she felt it. A very weak, very slow pulse. Slowly, Jo smiled.

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, I'm going to try to cram one more update in today because I'll be gone for the weekend. <strong>

**Gawd, Pockets has been getting beat up since book 1...I guess cause he's one of the only ones that can handle that crap. Gears has been getting it pretty rough too, lately...**

**And what the hell is Ghost up to?**

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it! Much love to you!**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

_'Hang on', _he was saying, _'they won't let me leave, but we've reached the boy's location. Once we have him, I'll come for you.'_

Demona's optics focused on Critter as the boy began to stir. He was still face-down in the sands, with Scorponok still poised above him like the angel of death. She watched, completely helpless, as he tensed then jerked away from the predacon's shadow. His green eyes were wide with fear, small legs curled up against his body.

_That's right, _a thought whispered through her processor, _hang on. Megatron could kill your brother with a simple word, he's keeping you alive just to steal your sparkling and give it the same life you had. Hang on, because there is nothing you can do, and every one else is scattered across the earth. Hang on, because you know no one will reach you in time. _

Megatron was seated on a throne forged from the metals of old tanks and rovers. His optics were offlined from recharge, but his soldiers all kept an optic on her. Some out of their duty to their leader. Some out of pure, desiring interest. Others out of curiosity. Demona was caught up in the hands of her enemy once again.

The only difference was that she couldn't do anything.

_If I attack..._Her gaze shifted back to Critter, to find him eying all the surrounding mechs in growing horror. _I can't watch him die. _

_If I submit..._As if reacting to her thoughts, she felt her tiny sparkling push closer to her spark. Her body stilled. It had been the first time the little one had moved, and a sudden pulse of anger pounded through her frame. _I must protect my sparkling at all costs. _

_Primus. _

How long had it been since she'd felt this way? Completely and utterly lost, hopeless. Useless. Like she was suddenly back in that pit Megatron had kept her in on Cybertron. A place without warmth, or sound, or light. Existing with no motion. With nothing.

Jolt reached through and took hold of her spark firmly, trying his fragging hardest to keep her attention, _'Demona! I will find you, I swear it!'_

_This sparkling was supposed to be protected...everything was supposed to be alright. _

Her mind was assaulted with memories of a different kind. The promises she'd made to Critter when he was still young and full of love and hope. When he had flown right out of his brother's hands and shot across the floor of Gears' old shop to latch on to her like some bad case of rust. The way how he had hit her with a round of questions, one right after another, so fast she could hardly keep up.

She tensed slightly when someone else reached through a bond to touch her. She recognized the star-like brilliance of his spark, the strength he radiated. Demona opened up and let Prime in, too. He wrapped his fingers around this sense of pain and doubt, as if he were shielding her from it. Like she had done with his anger mere days after he made the creator bond.

_'Paradox and the twins are on their way,' _Prime started, _'so is Ghost.'_

_They won't reach me in time. _Demona kept the thought to herself.

Jolt was quiet. Since both mechs were granted access into her spark, they could speak to each other. He had heard the words. Demona could sense him slightly relax.

"Demona!"

The cry shook her from her dark thoughts. She focused on Critter. His organic optics had found her, and now rested on her with a new hope. The anger and pain that had been there was gone now. Her real brother was back, but over _this _of all things.

He lifted his arm to reach for her, "Dem-" He cut himself off with a cry when one of Scorponok's legs snapped across his back. He fell back into the dirt.

Demona couldn't stop the snarl that tore out of her throat, snapping all the other decepticons to attention. A few straightened, those sitting down stood up. She fought her own weapons system, using every last inch of her will power to keep her claw blades sheathed beneath her wrist armor.

She settled for sending the decepticon a sharp look of warning.

Jolt gave her spark a squeeze, easing her a little, before he became distant.

_A battle, _she thought weakly, _he's fighting._

* * *

><p>Jolt twisted, flinging the bladed end of his electrified whips after the seeker.<p>

Thundercracker wasn't as quick or unpredictable as Skywarp, and he wasn't as cruel or cunning as Starscream. That didn't mean that he was weak, or easily fooled.

No, this seeker was balanced. He was fast and strong enough to be lethal, and he proved it. He liked to toss in random explosions of fire and smoke whenever he could, disorienting and damaging Jolt and his comrades.

Jolt fought through it, though. He could sense the rattling turmoil raging deep within the spark of his femme, and he was slagging _determined _to get to her. And that meant taking out this decepticon and getting Rex to medical attention _now._

Ahead of him, Ironhide was blasting with his cannons, taking quick but careful aim. Somewhere behind Jolt were two younger mechs, each using their own blasters or cannons to knock the seeker out of the sky. They were just shooting away. Jolt was also doing his part. However, most of his attention was focused on _watching _the jet. Thundercracker was using a complicated but effective pattern of aerials and spirals.

Jolt watched and held back so he didn't waste his energy. He held out until he could see the seeker's motions before he made them. He whipped his weapons around until they wrapped tight around the decepticon's body. Jolt yanked down, tearing Thundercracker off course. The mech began to spin, wings crumpling like weak tin beneath the force of Jolt's whips.

Thundercracker struggled to break free, but now that he had slowed down, he was an easy target for the other autobots. Soon the seeker was smoking, armor bent and peeled back from the force of the blows.

Jolt's spark grew lighter by the moment. In a matter of hours, he would be on his way to Demona and their sparkling. He was reaching through to her to let her know when his audio receptors caught a light 'pop'.

Jolt snapped his head up to look into Skywarp's cold red optics. He had enough time to haul back on his whips in an attempt to free them before the seeker's clawed hand plunged deep into his body, tearing through his armor and insides to grip the core of his frame.

"_Jolt!" _Ironhide shouted, rushing over.

Skywarp ripped his hand back out and warped elsewhere before he could be damaged with a dark bark of laughter. Jolt stood frozen in place, processor struggling to comprehend just _what _had happened. He couldn't feel...why couldn't he feel his legs? Or his arms? Or anything?

He hit his knees, systems giving a sharp groan as one by one, they began to collapse.

Ironhide's huge hands steadied him. Usually cold blue optics were wide with worry, searching for life. He was saying, "Jolt! Hold on, youngling!"

Jolt tried to speak, but nothing was working. His vision was dimming. Ironhide twisted around to shout at one of the scouts, "DO something! Get that fragging medic!"

_Why would he need Ratchet? _Things were fading fast now. The numbness shifted into this odd chill that clouded up the back of his processor. He couldn't quite remember anymore...why was he here? Where was...

Where was she?

His optics flickered out. The chill swept across the remainder of him, plunging the rest of him into emptiness.

_Where is Demona?_

* * *

><p><strong>You know...I was complaining about Supernatural the other day, talking about how the show had drug Dean and Sam up and down the road until they were battered and torn up...and here I am doing it to MY characters! Yeesh...<strong>

**I really, really adore Jolt. I do. I picked him out of a long list of autobots to pair up with Demona...and I really hated writing this chapter, but I had to do it...and you'll see why soon enough. **

**At least we know that they're at Rex's location now. **

**Anyway, love to the readers! Longer update than usual because I was gone longer than I expected! I hope you guys enjoyed!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42**

_Cold...why...why is he..._

Demona felt it deep in her spark.

_Pain. Suffering. Numbing cold. So cold._

And empty.

So, _so_ empty.

Her body stayed frozen, frame rigid. Her processor slowed down, her spark came to an abrupt halt in her chest. She had felt it, only for a moment. A screaming, burning agony, like Megatron himself had shoved his claws through her body and ripped out shattered pieces of her frame. A pain that bled white, lacing through her body like toxic energon. It pulsed through her for a second or two, effectively shutting down a few of her systems and nearly closing her processor down altogether.

_What...?_

It all died then, sweeping out of her body in one motion. Rapidly taking it's place, a numb freeze took over, until she could feel nothing else. Not the suddenly panicked pulls of her adopted mech creator, not the heavy hand that came down upon her shoulder to haul her back up from her knees.

_Why...why is..._

She couldn't think anymore. She couldn't move. Her spark flickered and clenched, loosing it's light so fast it was nearly nauseating. Her strength and will went with it, not so much as shattering but rather fading. Slipping away.

_Where is...why..._

Demona fought it, grasping at who she was in an attempt to stay sane. She searched for something, digging deep into her own spark to find it. Why...why did it feel like her spark was dead and her spirit was gone? What...

_Where is he._

Panic seized what was left of her senses when she felt the nearly severed bond. The bond that was tied directly to the core of her spark, the strongest one. Demona tried to reach through it, but she couldn't for some reason. It was like it was cut off, distant...so very far away...

_'JOLT!' _She kept reaching, _'Jolt, fight!'_

Outside, one of the decepticons was snarling, "What the slag is wrong?"

"She's...offlining," the one that had pushed her back up replied, sounding almost curious, "but why?"

_'Come back to me, please! Jolt!' _She ripped and clawed, fighting the cold and numbness that had almost completely taken over her body. She sank deep into her spark...but she couldn't, no matter how hard she tried, pull him back to her.

"It doesn't matter!" Another mech snapped, "Megatron wants her _alive_!"

_Jolt, where are you?_

All that met her desperate cries was silence. The cold was at her spark now. Like glass, she could feel it shatter into impossibly small shards. Suddenly, everything was gone. All feeling. All thought. She was lost, and the world around her was black. Her skies were empty and dark. _Without a sun._

Her body went slack, the decepticon pawns all jumped up in fear and shock. A few scrambled over and stood her back up in an attempt to get her attention. Megatron began to stir from his recharge.

_Without..._

She could no longer feel Prime, or Megatron for that matter. She no longer cared.

_Without a..._

He wasn't there anymore. Gone.

_...Sun...without light..._

The pieces of her spark scattered, gone.

_I can't...no...there's..._

Somewhere deep in the black emptiness, something began to burn. A wrathful fire that raged up, exploding through her.

_No...more..._

Complete thoughts died. Emotion fled. There was nothing but the anger. And for the first time, she welcomed it. A final whisper reached her, _'Where is Demona?'_

Mere seconds after offlining, sending the decepticon pawns into a panic, her optics onlined once again. Only this time they were different.

They were not white.  
>They were not light red.<p>

Relieved expressions took over their faces, until they really looked at her, and at the thick, rose red blades that nearly flew out of their place beneath layers of spinning armor.

She stared back with narrowed scarlet optics, and smiled.

* * *

><p>"<em><strong>She's a fucking hurricane in a glass jar, and as soon as that jar breaks, you're all going to die."<strong>_

* * *

><p><strong>Demona, her family, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. <strong>


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43**

_**You're all going to die.**_

The words kept echoing all around her, sometimes so loud her processor screamed from the volume, and sometimes so soft she could barely hear it. It was strange, really. Being locked in this pit of a world without light. Without feeling. Without thought. Without life. She was broken. Destroyed. Shattered. Split.

_**...To die.**_

And the only thing she could do was keep pulling at him, even though he was so far away she could hardly even feel him any more. Gone. A mere memory. She wanted, no _needed_, to feel something. Pain. Sorrow. Emptiness. But there was _nothing_.

Because her spark was gone with him.

_**You're all...**_

Wrath filled the canyons his fall had left in her, like great pits of boiling hot lava. Liquid fire that coursed through her with deadly intent. A wrath that was alien, a wrath she had never experienced before.

_**...Going to...**_

Why? Why was he gone? Why wasn't he coming back? She didn't know, but the rage seemed to, and it fed on that knowledge. It roared and fought, taking over her dead frame.

She couldn't feel her body, and she couldn't see.

Eventually, what was left of the bond slipped out of her hands. So she turned to the anger, and held on to it instead, losing herself in it's sweet roar.

_**...Die.**_

* * *

><p><em>This is not...her...<em>

The thought was slow and cold with realization. Critter watched with wide green eyes as she came back to life inside the circle of decepticons. Even then, he just knew something was wrong. Because of her eyes.

They weren't...gentle, or kind, or beautiful. They weren't the calm, steady white they changed to when she took her place as their guardian. They weren't the soft, loving light red they were when they weren't white. No, they were not warm. They were not any of these things.

They were hard and cold like ice, so far away from the Demona he knew. And they were a vivid, frightening scarlet, a red so deep it reminded him of spilled blood. Of anger and hate, of pain and destruction. They were strong, but broken at the same time. Different. The eyes of someone that had lost all sense and reason. Not Demona. Not _his _Dem, not _his _sister.

For the first time, his heart pounded in fear because of _her. _

Demona's claw blades shot out soundlessly, gleaming under the sun. They spun, moving so fast they were a blur. She moved, and two decepticons fell at her feet. One was screaming and convulsing in agony. The other lay lifeless, spark ripped from his chest.

Critter moved back, towards Scorponok. Even the predacon was shocked, maybe even frightened. He shifted back and forth, like he couldn't make up his mind on what to do.

Across from them, the decepticons were dropping by the second, chests and stomachs brutally ripped open. Flickering and dark sparks littered the ground, varying parts among them.

Once, Critter remembered his mom describing Demona as a guardian angel, a protector. Now she looked more like the angel of death, merciless and dangerous. After a complex, elegant round of twists and turns, Megatron's small army of pawns rested in the dirt. There wasn't a scratch on her armor, but energon was rolling down her body in rivers.

Scorponok scuttled backwards with a snarl, making his way closer to Megatron, who was just now waking.

Critter looked back and forth as Demona straightened, slowing the speed her blades were spinning at. Her fierce dark red optics fell upon him just as his fell upon her. Critter's spine went cold when he realized that their eyes were exactly the same. The same color. The same cruelty. Tears filled his eyes. He whispered, "Whats wrong with you, sis?"

Megatron tensed to stand, but Demona was on him before he could, slamming his head backwards so hard it cracked the back of his 'throne' in half. His roar of surprise and anger was muffled by her hand.

_Why...This isn't Demona, _the thoughts stormed through Critter's mind. Memories of her, smiling and kind, filtered through. When she would let him sprawl out on the hood of her car form and help him with his homework. When she'd squeeze his hand in reassurance when he was younger. When she made that promise, when he was tiny, that she would never leave him. That she would always come back. She was gone now...but why?

_I...pushed her away, it's my fault...I wouldn't...I couldn't forgive her...she...I never told her..._He bowed his head and squeezed his eyes shut as the tears began to spill out, _I'm sorry...it's not your fault! Come back to me! _He forced himself to look up in hopes that she had somehow heard.

Demona effortlessly kept Megatron back with one hand. She raised the other into the air, clenching her fingers beneath the energon-stained blades into a fist. She plunged her blades deep into his body, the motion barely slowed by his thick layers of silver armor. His entire frame jerked as she pushed through as far as she could.

Then the blades began to spin, sending up a shower of sparks and energon. Pieces of metal and strips of wiring and chunks of cables flew out. She literally drilled through him, leaving a vast hole in his body. She kept going until her blades bore through his back armor and right into the chair he was seated on.

Energon began to leak out of his mouth, making his sharp teeth glow. He smiled, though, and said, voice strained, "You are _my _creation."

She tore her weapons upward then, in a straight line up his chest and through his spark chamber. Demona split his body in half, all the way up to the crown of his helm.

Critter jumped when she pulled back. His body fell forward and hit the earth with a subtle boom. He stared, unable to move, at the death and destruction surrounding him.

Scorponok plunged into the dirt with a scream, disappearing before Demona could turn on him. She stood in the middle of it, dark optics fixed on Megatron's corpse.

Then, slowly, she turned away from him to face another. This one, Critter realized, was an _autobot._ A femme, with jet black armor and dark blue eyes. A good guy.

A good guy that had her blaster raised to Demona's head. Panic seized Critter, and he managed to move.

"I told you," the autobot was saying, voice frozen, "that I would be there to see you turn into the same pit-spawned monster your creator was. I told you that I would be the one to put you down."

The barrel of the blaster was glowing now. Demona started forward like she just another helpless decepticon pawn, the murderous fire never leaving her gaze.

Critter cried, "Demona! Demi, stop it!"

She kept on like he'd never spoken. His heart broke. He tried again, desperate, "Demona, _Please_!"

When she didn't stop, he crawled as fast as he could. He wasn't as fast as he used to be, but he could still get around. He managed to cut across her path, and took hold of a decepticon's plate of armor. He shuddered, noting that it was still warm, and used it to turn himself around to face her. He was shouting now, as loud as he possibly could, "This is NOT who you are! Demona, STOP! I know you're still there!"

"She's dead, human," The autobot interrupted, "there's nothing left of her but wrath and pain."

"NO!" He screamed at her, "Shut the HELL up!"

Critter tightened his hold on the armor, driven by something he couldn't explain, and hauled himself up. He straightened his legs and put his weight on his feet. For the first time in his life, Critter stood up.

Demona was still walking, completely ignoring him. So Critter sucked in as much air as he could, and yelled, "_SISSY_!"

She froze.

"You PROMISED!" He kept going, leaning against the decepticon to take most of the weight off his already shaking legs, "you _promised_ me that you would _always_ come back to me, that _no force_ could keep you from returning to me!"

Scarlet eyes dropped to the earth, searching. When he met them, he held his breath. The anger was gone, swept away from her eyes and replaced by an impossible pain, a pain he'd never seen before. He reached up towards her, "Come back, Dem, come back and be my sister again...I'm...I'm sorry...I..."

She took a small step towards him and reached back. He smiled weakly.

A shot of blue cut across the distance between them, burying itself in Demona's chest. The smile vanished as she fell backwards. The tears burned trails down his face, "_NO!"_

He dropped with her, hitting the ground with his legs so hard that he strained his bones, and moved towards her as fast as he could. He reached her, hauling himself up on to her smoking, half melted chest. He ignored the way her armor burned his hands, focusing on her exposed spark instead.

Right away, he knew that something was _wrong. Horribly _wrong. Her spark looked cracked, like she'd dropped it on the concrete or something. And it wasn't spinning like it was supposed to. He scanned over her damaged spark chamber, eyes finally stopping to rest on a tiny ball of light that had been nestled close to her spark. It was a dark purple, so he knew it didn't belong to her red spark. And it was flickering and fading. _Dying. _

He suddenly didn't have any energy, so he laid down and closed his eyes. He didn't even have the strength to cry.

* * *

><p><strong>...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44**

"Come on, baby..."Gears whispered, running her fingers over Sundance's horn. She had been talking to the sparkling for over an hour now, but no matter how much she pleaded or cried, the dragon would not open her eyes. Gears kept trying though, "wake up for mimi. You can do it..."

Sundance didn't even shift. She didn't jump up and explode with annoyance at being woken up, she didn't tense up and uncurl with a soft yawn. Her armor felt cold. Her eyes were dark.

_Why..._

Gears closed her eyes and laid her scarred face against a pale plate of rose red armor.

Sundance had just collapsed.

She had just fallen, almost lifeless, to the floor in a heap of damaged sparkling.

And there had been no reviving her.

"Dear God, please save my family..." Gears whispered, "bring them back to me..."

"How is she?" Jo asked softly, kneeling beside them.

"She's not waking up," Gears said quietly, "I can't...wake her up."

Jo reached out and gently touched the dragon's face, "Why did she...?"

"I think..." Gears took a deep, shuddering breath, "that Demona and Jolt were...hurt. Sparklings are tied to their parents...if ones injured, the other feels it, too."

Jo fell quiet.

"Before...all of this crap started, Demona...she said that things were collapsing around us. I told her to believe in us, to have faith in her family...but..."

_There's not much of us left..._Rex was missing, maybe even dead. Critter was missing, maybe dead. Pockets was a crushed shell of what he once was. Demona was missing, maybe dead. Sundance was...not responding. What was left to believe in?

She blinked, raising her pale green eyes up to Jo when the younger put a hand on her shoulder. She was having one of her 'blind days'. Everything was blurry, with the bare minimum of clarity. It was just another thing to stack on top of the pile of shit that just kept building up on her.

"You and your family are the strongest people I know," Jo said, "my father told me once that someone suffers through the fire because they're strong enough to survive it. I can't think of anyone else that can go through this hell and make it out sane."

"Even the strongest hearts break," Gears said quietly. Jo squeezed her shoulder lightly, switching subjects, "Alec woke up."

Gears tensed, eyes widening, "He...woke up?"

Jo nodded, "I don't know how. The medics were sure that he wouldn't even make it through the night, but he's awake now...and he's asking for you."

Immediately, Gears stood up to go to him. But before she could take a step, she froze and looked back down at Sundance, "I can't leave her."

Jo sat down in her place, "I'll watch over Sundance."

Gears hesitated another moment before limping off towards human infirmary across the hall.

Even though this was almost strictly an autobot base, a couple of humans still called it home. So, there was a cafeteria, albeit a small one, and an infirmary along with a hall lined with human sized rooms.

Gears made her way across the room to her oldest child, wrapped up like a mummy on his bed. She stopped beside him and reached down to touch his face, only to stop half way when she remembered that his jaw was broken. She settled for brushing her fingers along his right hand, one of the few parts of his body that _wasn't _broken. Quietly, she said, "Alec? Sweetie, are you..."

She trailed off when he managed to whisper something. A look of pain crossed his face when he did. Gears leaned closer, and strained to hear when he started again.

_"Where...are they _?"

She closed her eyes, "They're gone, baby. We don't know where they are...Megatron took them."

"Alex?"

She nodded.

Pockets seemed to sink further into the bed. She waited a few more minutes, half expecting him to jump back up and be perfectly fine. But he quieted, falling back to sleep. Gears sat on the edge of the bed and watched over him. She sat in silence for a long time, until Shark came in.

Shark scanned her pale eyes over the room before spotting Gears and making her way over. Gears could tell that the girl had something on her mind, but at the moment she really didn't care.

"How is he?" Shark started, breaking the silence.

"Alive," Gears sighed, "he's hanging on."

"He'll make it," the other said after a moment, "from what Rex has told me, this one is fucking indestructible."

Gears blinked. She let the girl's words weigh on her mind. Slowly, she relaxed, "All of my kids have been through hell...they all take the worst injuries, but they get right back up again."

"So...is that giant red robot-"

"Demona," Gears corrected almost sharply.

"-did you really adopt her?"

"Yes," Gears said, "and if you start that whole 'she's evil and crazy' shit I will knock you on your ass so fast your head will be spinning."

Shark blinked, "Hey, if you want to go opening your arms to giant aliens, knock yourself out. You got a soft spot for twenty foot tall robots, I get it."

"What do you want, Shark?"

"The one with the funny looking head-"

"His name is Wheeljack."

"-I know what his name is. Anyway, he says that they found all the missing people," her expression softened, "Ironhide is bringing Rex home now. They say he's in bad shape."

Gears felt her heart clench, "Like what kind of bad?"

Shark lowered her eyes to the floor, "Like 'he's lost too much blood' kind of bad."

"_Shit,_" Gears took in a deep, shaky breath, "what about the others?"

"They're all fine."

"How far are they...?"

"He said they should be here in a day."

It was painful to ask, because she _knew _something had happened, but she did anyway, "What about Alex and Demona?"

Shark shook her head, "Nothing."

Gears pushed a hand through her hair, "That's just...great."

"I'm sure they're fine. In case we haven't covered the subject already, Demona's a big ass friggin' robot. I'm sure there's not a lot of things that can hurt her."

"You'd be surprised," Gears stood up and turned back to her son. She reached forward and pushed his hair from his face.

Deep inside, she knew that something bad had happened.

And It wasn't about Rex, or Pockets, or Critter...

"If we all survive this," she whispered, "I'm never letting Prime split us up again. I'll fucking fight him if I have to."

* * *

><p><strong>We will be seeing Paradox in the next update most likely, and you can only imagine what kind of rage she'll fly into when she sees Demona..<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed it.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45**

Critter shivered as thunder roared above them.

He clenched his hands and lifted his head from Demona's cool armor. His green eyes fell to her face, searching for life, "Sister..."

_Please come back._

He lowered his gaze to her injury, spreading his fingers of the edges that had been melted smooth. Anger flared up inside him and he twisted to glare up at the black autobot, "What the hell did you do to her!"

"I did my job," she answered, flexing the fingers of her newly reformed hand, "I found a monster, and I killed it."

"A...a monster?" he whispered, "you..."

"She's not the girl she was, boy," she explained, "you're blind if you couldn't see it. She is broken. There is nothing left of her. If she was as kind at spark as you and those other fools claim, could she have slaughtered so many without a thought? Without feeling? If I had let her go, she would have slain me, and any others that crossed her path."

Critter fell silent as the weight of her words slammed into him like a ton of bricks. She kept going, "The 'autobot' Demona is dead. Accept it, and move on."

"_SHUT UP_!" He screamed, "_STOP_! You don't know _anything!_ She is MY guardian! MY best friend! And..."

"She's..." He squeezed his shut as more tears rose up, "she's my sister...I...I love her..."

"A word of advice," she turned away from him, "love no one. Trust no one, make no promises."

He ignored her, sliding down Demona's armor until he was back on the ground. He made his way over to her face and pulled himself up to rest against the side of her face, "You have to come back to me...I love you, sis...you...you have to come back to me..."

A powerful engine snarled, breaking through the heavy silence that fell over them. He didn't look up until he could here the sound of the tires rolling over the earth.

It was a pure white Dodge Viper. It slid sideways in the dirt and shifted forms before the tires even stopped spinning. He watched as the decepticon known as Paradox stepped out of the mass of twisting white alloys. Her covered optics slid around the corpse littered ground, before coming to rest on Demona. He tensed when she started forward, moving so fast and graceful that it was hard for his eyes to keep up with.

She dropped down beside her.

"Who," Paradox started, her voice low and dangerous, "shot her."

Critter bit back a snarl when the other stopped walking and answered, "I put her down."

_'Put her down', like she's some kind of animal. _He went rigid with anger, clenching his fists. He was about to say something when Paradox disappeared, or rather, shot away and towards her. He blinked, eyes widening when she slammed into the other, sending her soaring backwards and into what remained of Megatron's throne.

"If you value your life," she growled, "you'll stay there."

Naturally, the other got back to her feet.

Soundlessly, a pair of broad, bone-white blades slid out from beneath her wrist armor. The other snapped, "You would attack an autobot? Someone you're allied with?"

"I allied myself with the autobots," Paradox answered, "I allied myself with Prime and with Demona, with all the _true _autobot warriors. _You_ are not one of them. I owe _nothing _to you."

"Why do you fools _insist_ on siding with her? She is Megatron's creation-"

"No," Paradox snarled, "she is _my _creation!"

Critter blinked. _**WHAT**__!_

The other was wearing the same expression, blue eyes round with confusion and shock.

Her voice was almost a whisper when she finally reacted, "...What...?"

_Creator? Thats..._Critter's eyes shifted form Paradox to land on Demona, then back again. _That means...she's Demona's..._ he snapped out of thoughts when he caught Demona's spark roll in her chest. It was a very subtle movement, one he should have missed. He tensed up and shouted at the white decepticon, "HEY! She's still alive!"

Paradox didn't move for a minute, but he knew she heard him because her shoulders went rigid. She continued to watch the other, poised like she was a predator about to make her kill. Critter tried again, "Paradox! Help her!"

"This isn't over," she finally said. Critter let out a small sigh when her blades slid back into hiding, and she made her way towards them. She knelt in the energon stained dirt and transformed a hand into a set of tools he'd seen Ratchet use before. He watched her study Demona's spark.

"Can you save her?" He whispered. He lowered his eyes to Demona's face.

Paradox's answer was almost late, "I will not rest until her optics are lit."

Critter leaned against Demona's cheek, closing his eyes. _Hang in there, sis..._

* * *

><p><strong>Something tells me that Paradox would totally own Ghost's ass. <strong>

**Something also tells me that she just might actually do it.**

**I'll probably have another update on here today...hope you guys enjoyed it.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46**

Gears stood between Jo and Shark, watching with dull, pale green eyes as the first of the returning autobots rolled into the hangar. There was a huge twist in her heart left from her kids.

Pockets hadn't woken again. The doctors had shoved her and Jo out the door, and wouldn't let either of them back in, even when Gears had picked up a block of cement left over from the destruction of half the hangar and came at them with it. They weren't keep her updated, either, which was only tossing fuel on the growing fire.

Wheeljack had taken to watching over Sundance. He was schooled on the basics when it came to medical needs. He was doing his best on keeping Sundance's spark warm and repairing what he could of her body. She was unresponsive though, and hadn't woken up once.

There was still no news on Demona or Critter. It had been almost a week since Megatron had taken them away. Gears was on the verge of losing her mind. She'd held on to hope as long as she could. She was almost numb from it all now.

The only good thing was that Rex and the other missing kids were due to arrive back at base today. And even that bit of relief came with a price. Everyone was fine but Rex...who was hitching a ride inside Ratchet so the medic could keep an eye on his condition.

And then there was Jolt...the newest information they'd gotten from Prime. To say he was injured was a complete understatement. Prime have given them just enough details to figure out. She knew now why Sundance had collapsed, and why Demona hadn't made an attempt to get in contact with them.

"Do you believe in God?" Jo asked, breaking the silence. A pair of young scouts were the first ones to enter the hangar. The hulking form of Ironhide wasn't far behind.

"Sometimes I wonder," Gears said softly, "he's drug my family up and down the gravel road from hell until each one of us was bruised and beaten...but at the same time, he gave me a family. Kids..."

"There is no such thing as God," Shark added, "there is no such thing as a higher power. We are born, we grow old, and we die."

"Why do you say that?" Jo's dark blue eyes looked as tired as Gears felt.

"What kind of God pulls this shit on good people? I'm not saying I'm good, I'm the opposite actually, but from what I know about you...none of you deserve this." Her eyes darkened.

The three of them fell quiet as Ironhide rolled to a stop. The women tensed up when the familiar yellow hummer entered next. Ratchet rushed past them, never slowing down. He left the hangar and rolled right inside the main base building.

Gears and Shark turned to follow, until Jo whispered, "Oh no..."

Gears swung back around in time to see Prime come in with his group. There was a big flat-bed trailer hooked to him, and on it was a mech with familiar rich blue armor. Like Ratchet, Optimus passed through the hangar and headed towards the med bay.

Gears felt their eyes fall upon her, but she said nothing. She didn't have the strength to. She turned around and went after Rex and Jolt instead.

* * *

><p>"Ariel."<p>

Gears shifted, coming out of her numbing doze. Slowly, she raised half closed eyes up to the towering figure of Optimus Prime.

His usually bright, wise optics were just as tired as her's were. But there was hope in them.

Gears saw it and straightened up, "Have you heard anything?"

"Paradox has found Demona and your son."

Gears was up on her feet before he finished talking, "Where?"

"Across the ocean," he said quietly, "one of our aerial bots is preparing to leave. Critter is fine...but, Ariel...Demona was wounded."

_Damn it all. _She closed her eyes and held her breath, "How bad is it."

"Paradox has-"

"_How_ _bad."_

_"_She reports damage to her spark."

Gears paused, before lifting her eyes to him, "You bring my kids home, Optimus. I don't care what it takes. Bring them home."

He inclined his head, "I swear it."

* * *

><p><strong>Things are kinda gonna slow down now, I think...<strong>

**I think I'm going to make myself buy DOTM...to complete the collection if anything else...**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47**

"WHAT THE HELL!"

Gears winced, eyes turning towards the entrance to the human infirmary as a tray of instruments came flying out. Jo blinked, "Sounds like Shark is on the attack again."

"Are you fucking STUPID!" the raging dark haired girl went on, voice echoing down the vast hallways. Jazz and another stopped in their tracks and turned wide, fearful optics in their direction. Shark was just getting started, "You damn idgets! He's ALLERGIC to that shit!"

One of the paramedics came rushing out with a panicked look on his face, "I'm s-sorry! I didn't know!"

"Well NOW YOU DO!"

"With a woman like her," Gears said, "who the hell needs an overprotective mom?"

The girl in question came stomping out. She snorted and huffed, "STAY OUT!"

Then she turned back around and stormed back in. If there had been a door to the room, she would have slammed it shut behind her. Gears glanced at Jo, "You want to go in face the great and terrible bloody wrath of Jaws?"

"Age before beauty," Jo said, motioning for her to go first. Gears snorted and pushed her forward, countering with, "beauty before brains."

Jo laughed nervously but stepped inside.

Shark was walking back over to Rex's bed, which wasn't far from Pockets'. It had only been a few days since the big boys had brought Rex home, and he was unconscious with a high fever. The paramedics had tried to lock Gears and the two younger girls out, but Shark wasn't having any of that shit when she saw what condition Rex was in, and pretty much _fought _her way into the infirmary. A few of the doctors were still sporting a big ugly bruise on their face.

After that, the three of them were allowed inside as long as they didn't make a lot of noise and didn't interfere with the boys' recovery. Gears had kept a watchful eye on things, as only a mother could, and could tell that her oldest son was recovering. It was too early to tell for Rex. Gears made her way over to the boys, passing Rex since Shark was tending to him. It was amazing really, how gentle and attentive the girl was considering her nickname and her reputation, which _gave _her her nickname.

But she had yet to leave Rex's side.

Gears knew that she would take could care of that crazy ass kid. So she went straight to Pockets, who had his eyes cracked open and looking around. Jo was already there, carefully holding the hand that wasn't broken.

His green eyes shifted to Gears when she sat down on the edge of his bed and combed her fingers through his thick red hair. He tried to speak, but the words came out slurred and raspy, unclear because he couldn't move his jaw. "How...are they?"

Gears thought for a moment. She knew exactly who he was talking about, and the reminder of what all had happened in this past week was enough to make her heart cold in her chest. Rex was in bad shape. Pockets was doing better, but he wasn't out of the danger zone yet. Critter was fine besides some bruises on his legs. Demona and Jolt were locked down in the med bay, along with Sundance, who had finally woken up.

Gears had only gotten in there a few times since the autobots had brought them in. And while they looked nothing like the mangled, stripped mess Demona had been in the first battle at Mission City, the damage was still immense. Jolt had nearly had his insides ripped out. Demona's chest had been blown open. And if gears EVER found out who the hell was responsible, she'd skin their ass and light them on fire.

It was bad enough that Ratchet, as cranky and busy as ever, kept shoving her and everyone else, _including _Prime, out the door. Except Paradox. For some reason, that odd ball ex-decepticon was the only working bot allowed in there. And that bitch _stayed _in there. Gears had seen her hard at work on trying to repair Demona's body the few times she had managed to sneak in there. Ratchet was never far away, the busiest she'd ever seen him while he worked on saving Jolt's life.

Nobody spoke much about it out loud. The truth was that both of the two should have died after receiving their wounds. In a way, Gears wasn't surprised that they were holding on. Demona had walked the line between life and death so many times that she had to count on both hands. In all those times, Demona had only actually died _once_. And even then, she didn't stay gone for long. Megatron couldn't kill her. Not one of those fatal wounds had been given by his hand.

If their sparks were really connected...Demona was too damn stubborn to die. Jolt was too damn stubborn to let her go. He was surviving because of her. As long as she held on, so would he, and neither of them would die. _They really are perfect for each other._

"We don't know, babe," Gears finally said, "Sundance woke up, but she's...different. She refuses to leave Demona or Jolt. She doesn't sing anymore, she doesn't fly. But...Demona and Jolt are the same. There's been no changes with them."

He closed his eyes. Gears could hear him sigh.

"Alex...?" he continued after a moment.

"He won't leave the med bay doors," Gears sat down on the edge of the bed, "I've tried everything to get him to come here, but it's like his butt is hot glued to the floor. He says that he wants to be there when Demona wakes up."

"Mom...what are going to do...if she...if she doesn't make it."

Gears leaned down over him, touching her forehead to his lightly, "I _know _Demona will be back. Do you know how?"

"How?"

"Because she's a protector, a guardian. And as long as we're here, as long as she has something worth fighting for, she will never leave us. She'll always get back up...she always has, always will."

She watched as the corner of his mouth twitched upwards, like he was trying to smile. She kissed him on the forehead, "Sleep, Alec."

Jo waited until he was asleep before she asked, "Do you really believe that?"

"Jo," Gears started, "that girl has been crushed beneath a thirty story building. She's had claws shoved into her spark, nearly had it ripped out, survived spark-shock from losing Optimus, and faced the decepticon army in Egypt by herself until help could reach her. Each time, she's come back. And each time, she's come back stronger. I have complete faith in her. My baby girl can survive."

* * *

><p><strong>Ah, Sundance...<strong>

**ANYWAY, last one for tonight! much love!**

**Demona and her family, the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48**

"You know what you're doing," Ratchet said, breaking the heavy silence that had filled the med bay almost all day. His blue optics shifted away from Jolt's mangled parts to land on the mysterious decepticon saboteur standing across from him. She was working just as hard as he was to revive Demona.

"Would you believe that I was once a medic? I learned from the best." Paradox replied. This time he paused altogether to send her a full out curious look.

"And you left the field that saves lives to join the one that takes them."

"I had no choice." Paradox spun her hand of tools before reforming them into a different set.

Ratchet turned back to his student, optics darkening when he took in the mangled armor and the very faint light of his spark. Both bots had their chest plates open so he could keep an optic on their sparks. Jolt's spark had been black and still for the longest time. Ratchet had resigned himself to reporting the youngling's offlining.

But the second they had brought Demona into the room, his spark had begun to shine, though very faintly. Her's had as well.

"I didn't know she was carrying," Paradox said softly, interrupting his thoughts, "I don't know how it survived. The stress alone from being taken and held against her will should have killed it."

"I'd say it was a trait it picked up from Demona," he explained, "that femmes been in my med bay with fatal injuries more than those blasted twins." He walked away from Jolt's berth to go to the one settled behind it. He picked through various tools and parts until he found what he needed. He changed subjects, "what forced you to turn into a warrior, Paradox?"

"Several things. The loss of my mate at first, later the loss of my sparkling. Before the war escalated into a nightmare, I broke away from my fellow medics and trained myself into a predator. My friend tried to stop me...but I was already consumed in the same wrath that turned Megatron into a murderer."

At this, he stopped. Again, he looked at her, "You knew Megatron before he turned?"

"Yes," her voice softened, "I knew him very well."

Ratchet stared. Slowly in his overworked processor, he was pulling out pieces of earlier conversations and what he already knew about her and putting them together. She was familiar to him, especially now that she had that mysterious visor raised.

"You were an autobot," he said abruptly, "when you were a medical officer."

Paradox froze over Demona. Her vivid scarlet optics lifted to focus on him, but she said nothing.

Ratchet kept going, "you became a warrior when your bonded turned against you. You vanished from the ranks in your hunt for him."

"Very good, Ratchet," her tone was still quiet, optics emotionless, "I see your processor hasn't dulled over these long years."

"_Primus,_" He straightened, "it really _is _you."

She said nothing, watching the expression of shock then disbelief cross his face.

"You're different now, but I can still see it. My first student, Angelus."

"Angelus is dead," Paradox corrected, "I am Paradox."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, so two know she's Demona's mommy, and one actually knows WHO she is. Or who she WAS anyway...<strong>

**Hope you guys enjoyed it! **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter 49**

He knew in his spark that it was really Angelus standing before him. Or what was left of her, anyway. She had just barely been in her second frame when he took her on as his apprentice. He had still been young then, still full of hope and dreams. Despite his lack of experience, he had seen something in young Angelus.

She had shown an impossibly deep love for life, and she believed in peace. She was intelligent and she learned quickly. She was also a hard worker, he soon found out. She refused to rest until the job was done. All of the ingredients of a good medic. She was his first student, and possibly his best.

Once she had graduated from the academy with the title CMO, alongside Optimus, who was a close friend in those days, and her adopted sister Ghost, she had been assigned to a mine. Several dangerous accidents happened in mines, so she was greatly needed there. Ratchet had only seen her once or twice after, when _he _had been sent to the same place after some of the tunnels collapsed and hundreds of mechs were damaged.

She never failed as a medic, never gave up hope and never lost that hard-working spirit of her's.

Back then, her armor had been a lovely red. She had the bluest set of optics he'd ever seen, full of kindness. Soft-spoken. She didn't believe in war and she saw the good in everyone.

But now...

Part of him didn't want to believe that this was Angelus.

_This _femme was covered in sharp, sleek, white armor that reminded him of bones. Her optics were the _reddest _set of optics he'd ever seen, moreso than Megatron's. And they were cold and hard, like she had suffered a life of death and horror. He had seen her in action once, back in Egypt, where she had effortlessly ripped through the decepticon ranks like it was mere child's play. She moved without a sound. She was a perfect predator, and she looked the part. So very far away from the young femme he'd taken under his wing long ago on Cybertron... Her words repeated in his processor; _'Angelus is dead. I am Paradox.' _

_How can it be possible? She's Angelus, but she isn't..._

Despite the scars and the frozen stare, she still moved the same when she worked, with great care and grace. Paradox seemed to lose herself when she worked on repairing Demona's body, becoming silent. Just as Angelus would.

"What happened to you?"

"Megatron. The war. Spark-break. Being torn from my creation the moment she was in her first frame," she turned back to Demona, "Angelus died, Ratchet, and with it all of the kindness and hope she had in her spark."

"Then how did you come to be, Paradox?"

No reply answered him. So, he tried something else, "Does Ghost know-"

"Ghost," the name was almost snarled, "knows nothing. I'd rather it stay that way."

"She's your sister."

"Far from it."

He was about to push for an explanation when the doors to his med bay abruptly slid open. Ratchet snatched up his best throwing wrench and turned with his business face on.

Gears was stomping inside, followed by her youngest son. Prime was there two, and was almost cautiously poking his head inside. He was the first to speak, "How are they?"

"Without change," Paradox replied, "they have yet to make any real progress on recovery."

"Can't you just work your magic with those scary tools of yours and fix 'em?" Gears asked, putting her hands on her hips, "it worked the other five or six times."

Ratchet vented sharply, "No, Gears, I cannot simply 'work my magic' and 'fix them'. It's not a matter of physical injury."

She tensed slightly, looking down when Sundance slowly uncurled. The sparkling had been unusually still and quiet. She had wrapped herself up in a ball and settled on Demona's armor, blending in perfectly. It was almost heart-breaking...she was nothing like the Sparkling that would ambush him in the hall ways or play pranks on him with his tools.

Gears made her way over and climbed up Demona's body. She settled beside the dragon and began to run her fingers over Sundance's horns. The sparkling said, voice quiet, "It's not their bodies...it's momma's spark...it's broke."

Gears was silent.

Critter rolled over to Demona's head and reached a hand out to touch her cheek plates. Ratchet made his way over to Demona's berth, standing beside Paradox. He looked down at the boy, "Alex, tell me again, what happened?"

"She just...fell," he started, "it was like she just died. The decepticons were freaking out, because Megatron had told them to keep her alive. When they all circled around her, she woke up again, but she was...different. It wasn't her. Her eyes were...red. Blood red. It was like God replaced her with some assassin from hell. I've never seen...so much death before." He raised his eyes to the senior medic, "She _cut _Megatron in _half._ With _one _hand."

Ratchet looked at Angelus-_not _Paradox, because he could _still _see Angelus in her-and asked, "Usually when a bonded mech falls, his femme suffers the same injuries, and she becomes unconscious until he's repaired and revived. Her strength is gone until his returns. I don't understand _how _Demona stood back up, never mind standing up to _fight_."

He vented sharply and shook his head. Prime was standing inside now, the door shut behind him. He asked, tired blue optics on Demona, "You've never heard of this before."

"I have," Paradox said. Her set of tools shifted back into a hand, which she lowered to Demona's face. All optics, organic and cybertronian, landed on her. "I know of an femme that had her spark ripped from her chest. Her corpse was left to rot in a black pit on Cybertron, but her spark was full of pain and anger, and she somehow survived. Demona fell because she was separated from Jolt's spark. She rose again because wrath filled the emptiness left from it."

"She lived on anger alone?" Gears asked, blinking.

"Yes."

"When she wakes up," Critter looked up at the two medics, "will she be _our _Demona again? If it broke her spark..."

"I don't know, youngling," Ratchet said with a soft vent, "all we can do is wait, and hope."

* * *

><p><strong>A little history lesson on Paradox. <strong>

**I'm actually working on a prequel to this series that's about Angelus and how she became Paradox in detail. It's coming along nicely, but whether I post it on here or not is completely up to you guys. Also, I'm probably going to do another continuation, but it'll be about Sundance when she's older. Same deal with the Angelus one. Both of them will probably be a LOT shorter than The Guardian trilogy stories. **

**Um, hope you guys enjoyed. Might have one more up later today. Much love to you!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50**

_I am proud, _Paradox realized one day while standing over Demona's still form, _to be her creator. _

The strangest emotion filled her spark when the thought crossed her processor. It was a cold shock, to have real feeling when she had been bound in rage for so long. An entire life time of wrath, of slaying and hunting. Once or twice after she'd opened her optics to a circle of awestruck decepticon scientists, she had wondered where this unquenchable anger came from. Of course, she had no memory of her previous life, of Angelus.

But her spark, carrying it's own vast scars, knew. It had remained dead and broken inside her, the very source for her anger, forever mourning a great loss. She nearly went insane from it all...

_"I live to hunt,"_ she had told Demona four years ago in the middle of their battle, _"I live to destroy."_

_"That's no way to live," _had been the strange youngling's response. A decepticon, _Megatron's _only child. Paradox fought, and fell. The very first defeat she'd ever had.

_"You asked me why I turned against my creator, how I found my strength, I found something here...something precious...and I found peace."_

_Peace. _A foreign word, a forgotten dream. But she had seen it in Demona's optics that day, something Paradox's old spark remembered. Her spark had been ripped open then, body and processor assaulted with feelings she hadn't felt since the beginning of the war. _My creation, _it had whispered to her, _I found my creation. _

And Paradox was proud of her.

"You care deeply for her, don't you?" The autobot medic asked, breaking the silence that had filled the med bay.

"What makes you say that?"

"You went out of your way to get to Egypt then nearly gave your life to save her, when you had attacked her days earlier."

"Demona is the very first of her kind. She was born in the black, empty pits of cybertron for the sole purpose of future mass destruction. When she was old enough, she was 'trained' by Megatron himself. Every day of her life was spent bending to his will until he was sure he had created the perfect weapon. Every thing that she has seen, every thing that she has felt, should only throw fuel on the fire...but she still changed. She turned against it all, and fought for what she _knew _was right. No matter how hard she fell, she always rose again."

Paradox shifted her tools into a different set, "Who wouldn't be affected by her?"

Ratchet had a small smile on his face, "In a way, she reminds me of Angelus."

Paradox stilled.

"She never rests until the bots and people she cares about are out of harm's way."

Paradox stepped back and was about to hand him a reply that would end the conversation when her spark clenched in her chest in warning. Her frame went rigid. Ratchet took notice, and paused to question her. The words never left his mouth.

With a jerk and a sharp gasp, Jolt woke.

Ratchet jumped in surprise, dropping his tools. They hit the floor with a loud clatter. Jolt's vivid, deep blue eyes flew across the room, body going rigid. They landed on the older medic, who was venting rather sharply, "PRIMUS, Jolt! Are you TRYING to offline me!"

Paradox blinked, "You're online."

_And with half of his insides missing, too. Impressive._

Jolt remained tense, like he was expecting an attack. Ratchet calmed down and quickly stepped closer, starting off with a round of questions.

_But if he's online..._Paradox turned her gaze back to Demona. There was no change, not even in her spark. _Somethings wrong. She should be up, too..._

"W-what..." Jolt started, voice strained. His systems started struggling, giving sharp whines as they tried to operate parts that weren't there. A hand flew up to clench at the gaping wound in his stomach, "R-Ratchet...Where...what happened..."

"Jolt," Ratchet shoved him back down when he tried to sit up, "you don't have the strength, youngling!"

The young mech shuttered his optics, a sharp wheeze of air leaving him, "I can't...where..."

He fought, but he was too weak to do much. Ratchet braced one arm across his chest and turned his gaze to Paradox, "Quickly!"

She knew what he wanted and glided over to the two of them. She slipped a hand beneath Jolt's head. One of the junior medic's hands flew up to clamp down on her arm. His optics were wide with fear and pain, "Where is she?"

"Safe," Paradox said, softening her voice, "she's here, right beside you. You're together, mech. No harm can befall her here."

He stared at her like he was searching her expression. What he saw seemed to satisfy him, because his grip loosened. Paradox slipped her fingers beneath the back of his helm and put him into a medical stasis. His frame slackened.

Ratchet vented again. Paradox took the moment to study Demona's bonded. "He's stronger than he looks if he was able to online before you even completed repairs."

"I don't know _how_." He agreed. His optics shifted back to Demona, searching for any sings of waking. But she was still as a corpse. He sighed, "she should have woken, too."

"Somethings wrong," Paradox added. She left the two mechs to return to Demona. She stared hard at the younger femme, trying to figure out this new mystery.

* * *

><p><strong>BAHAHAHAHAH!<strong>

**I am SOOO on a roll today, folks! Do you realize how long it's been since the damn story has flowed this easily? It's been _months_. I am SO psyched. So, if I can stay up long enough, will probably have the next one up later tonight. **

**Hope you guys enjoyed! Much love to my readers!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51**

"Has she shown any signs of onlining at all?"

Ratchet paused to glance at Prime, then turn to look at Demona. Paradox took the half melted plates of Demona's chest armor and set them on the berth that carried Jolt's damaged armor. Ironhide was working on making replacement pieces now. Soon they would be finished, and they could begin the finishing touches on repairs.

Both of them had been working nonstop for nearly two weeks, repairing all the damage and replacing all damaged parts. Jolt had woken one more time during then, but Demona had not even flinched.

Paradox turned towards Prime, who was a frequent visitor now that the two young warriors were no longer in danger physically. Gears and her child was, too. They weren't there now because the woman had drug her child off to the cafeteria to refuel.

"No."

Prime inclined his head.

The part of Paradox that still belonged to Angelus pained at the expression on his face. Once, many years ago, the two of them had been close friends. She knew that this was his expression when he was weak with grief or fear. Her spark ached in reaction.

"She never had trouble waking up before," Prime said quietly.

Ratchet snorted, "I know. She's always pushed her limits."

"It doesn't make sense..." the towering leader of the autobots leaned against the wall, dragging a hand down his face, "she should have changed...she should have onlined with Jolt..."

"Can you sense anything in her?" Ratchet pushed gently, "can you touch her spark?"

Prime fell quiet for a moment, optics dimming. He came back a few minutes later, "I sense her, but she is...very weak. And hurt. I've tried sending her strength, but the bond feels strained..."

"Primus," Ratchet vented, "somethings wrong."

"That's what I've been telling you," Paradox stated, "did you notice that her sparkling has stopped growing as well?"

Prime almost shot to attention. He sent them a confused look, "Sparkling...?"

"Demona is carrying, Optimus," Ratchet said, "the sparkling is still very young. She meant to tell you, but, as you can see, things happened." His gaze fixed on Paradox, "it stopped growing?"

"It's still alive," Paradox explained, "healthy even, which is a miracle in itself...but it hasn't grown."

Prime walked over, leaning slightly so he could see into Demona's exposed chest. His deep blue optics seemed to soften, "It's a mech, isn't it?"

"Yes," Paradox answered, crossing her arms, "and considering all that's happened, he's a strong one."

Ratchet mentioned something which started up an entirely new conversation. Paradox blocked them out, focusing on Demona. Her spark was still twisted in her chest, sending a cold shock of warning through her. Every time she looked at her, Paradox felt it.

Optimus lingered for a while until his duties as Prime called him away. Several hours later, Paradox was still standing over Demona. Ratchet, having done all he possibly could for Jolt aside reattaching his new armor, was deep in a much needed recharge in his quarters on the other side of the room.

Paradox stood straight backed, arms crossed over her chest. Her processor noted the strain on her body from a lack of recharge, but she pushed it away. Once, when she was walking the long black pits of Cybertron, she had stumbled upon a good sized lot of decepticons, enough to make an small army. She had been up for days, never stopping, tearing through each and every one of them. It was the longest battle she'd ever been in, and it had completely drained her. But she would not stop and rest. She kept hunting.

Her optics lifted from Demona to fix on the doors as they slid open. She gave Ironhide no greeting as he stepped inside and settled one of the bins Ratchet often used to hold his larger tools. Inside was new pieces of armor for both, Jolt and Demona.

Paradox inclined her head when he looked towards her. He gave a grunt before making his way back out. She went to work, carefully reattaching every piece of Demona's armor back to her body. She worked in silence, thankful that the fragging medic was recharging and not throwing questions at her, like he had taken to doing. _Nosy slagging mech..._

She froze when Demona's fingers twitched, holding her breath. Paradox waited for Demona to online.

A minute passed.  
>Two minutes.<p>

Three.

Slowly, she began to relax. _Almost. At least she's moving now..._

Paradox was turning away when the armor on Demona's wrists began to spin. She went rigid, recognizing the sound of shifting alloys, and focused her red optics back on the young femme in time to see her claw blades slide out once the grooves had lined up. They were still streaked with dry energon.

Paradox faced her completely, feeling her spark pulse almost painfully in her chest. Her core went cold as the young femme's optics lit.

_Primus, no. _

They were red. A deep, wrathful, dangerous red. And the second they were online, they fixed on Paradox and darkened.

Paradox had just enough time to activate her blades and raise them to protect her spark before Demona's lethal claw blades came slicing towards her. One bone white blade fell to the floor in pieces. Paradox stepped back, but Demona was already up on her feet and coming towards her.

Again, the claw blades rushed towards her. This time, Paradox couldn't dodge. She ended up flying across the floor and and slamming right into the door to Ratchet's quarters. The impact was hard enough to put her body into shock, leaving her vulnerable.

Fortunately, Demona wasn't interested in making a kill this time around. She walked right past her sparkling, who was calling for her in a terrified voice, and cut through the med bay doors. In a flash of rose red, the femme was gone, leaving a path of destruction in her wake.

Paradox struggled to recover, cursing vividly. _No _mech had ever hit her so hard. She leaned forward when the door behind her shuddered, like it was trying to open, but it couldn't. She'd left a massive dent in the metal. Behind it, she could hear Ratchet cussing up a storm.

She forced herself up slowly. Prime's voice echoed over the public communications link, _'Ratchet! Paradox! What-'_

_'I-I think I just saw Demona!' _a scout interrupted.

Paradox stood up. She vented sharply, turning to swipe her remaining blade down the middle of Ratchet's jammed door. He punched a hand through and yanked the doors apart, "What the _slag _is-"

"Our patient is awake," Paradox cut him off. She sheathed her remaining blade, optics dropping to the other that was laying on the floor. Paradox's blades didn't _shatter_, "and she's not happy."

* * *

><p><strong>Last one for tonight, promise...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs ot me. Transformers does not. **


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52**

Optimus ran.

He paid just enough attention to his surroundings to avoid stepping on the few humans that called the autobot base home. His optics were open, searching. An explosion somewhere on the other side of the main building shook base and rapidly filled the hallways with black, thick smoke. _Primus...what happened?_

Jazz came stumbling out of the mess. His visor flipped up to stare at the taller with wide optics, "Optimus! Demonas gone slagging crazy! She's blowin' holes right through base!"

The fact that he wasn't using the accent he'd picked up from the earthlings was enough to tell Optimus how serious things were. Optimus started, "Jazz, find Sunstreaker and Sideswipe. They may be the only ones that can keep up with her. Do what you can to stop her, but do _not _offline her!"

"Yes, Prime!" Jazz dropped and shifted forms in a liquid smooth motion, hitting the floor and taking off to hunt down the young front liners. Optimus kept running, spark squeezing so tight in his chest that it pulsed with pain. _How could this happen? Demona is...she's not supposed to be this way!_

_'She's heading towards the exit!' _Ironhide shouted over the public link. Mudflap chimed in, _'YO! This chicks be friggin' CRAZY!'_

_'Ironhide, follow her! Don't let her leave!' _He ordered. _If what Alex and Paradox says is true, she is a danger to everyone..._

His spark clenched again when he realized this. Demona had been an autobot for little over six human years, but she had quickly become one of his best. She was a hard worker with a good, strong, merciful spark. When he had asked her to return to base to help him locate injured mechs, he could tell that she wanted to refuse for the sake of staying with her human family...but she left them anyway. She put her family and her faction first, always.

Despite her heritage and the way she was raised, many of his soldiers had grown attached to her. Ironhide had come to trust her like an old comrade, and had even posted himself beside her in battle once or twice before. Ratchet had come to actually enjoy her company in his med bay, even though the old medic would never admit it. Jazz treated her like a good friend. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe actually respected her as a warrior now, after she had saved their lives on the field. Several other younger mechs looked up to her, Bumblebee among them.

In the short six years she had been with them, she had proved herself time and time again, and he had been proud of her. But it seemed like the young femme he'd come to love as his own creation was gone.

_No. _The thought was harsh in his processor, _we can save her. She **will** come back to us..._

Optimus was forced to stop when the wall on his right exploded outward, and the very source of the destruction stepped through. Deadly scarlet optics fixated on him, gleaming claw blades spun as if in hunger. Optimus could only stare, frozen in place. He struggled to come up with an explanation for what he was seeing...

This was _not _Demona.  
><em>This <em>was _Megatron._

It was Demona's body, Demona's weapons. But it was her mech creator's hate, his thirst for energon and revenge. _You were supposed to be different. _

Optimus narrowed his optics when she shifted one of her hands into a cannon and raised it to his chest, the barrel lighting with a crimson glow. He knew that she was still there somewhere, buried beneath it all. He could feel it in the core of his spark. So he did something he hadn't done for years.

He reached through the bond, as strained as it was, took firm hold of her spark, and pulled.

She flinched.

"Demona," he tried, "I know you're still there. Fight it, youngling. This is NOT who you are."

He pulled harder, determined to find her. The cannon was still raised, but the glow had begun to fade. Then, something changed in her optics.

The color seemed to dull, and her optics became full of a crushing agony. His frame tensed when he felt the lightest brush of her spark in response, like she was trying to reach back. One whisper touched him, nearly stopping his spark.

Before he could react or respond, the murderous wrath snapped back into place and she shot away with a snarl. Optimus watched her go, repeating the phase she'd spoken over and over again in his processor; _"Help me."_

* * *

><p><strong>:(<strong>

**Hope you guys enjoyed. Much love...**

**Demona and her family belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53**

"What the slag happened?" Ironhide growled, turning as the older set of twins came racing back, powerful engines roaring.

Optimus didn't answer. He was staring off in the direction Demona had gone. The bond was growing weaker, so he knew that she was already far, far away. As if to prove the point, Sideswipe flipped his form in the air and transformed without stopping. He crouched to slide through the dirt before he could stop, sending up a spray of dirt. Sunstreaker followed his lead.

"That femme is slagging _fast_," Sideswipe started with a mildly impressed look on his face. Sunstreaker had a scowl plastered on his face plates.

Ratchet snapped, "Where is she?"

"We don't know," Sunstreaker answered, tone serious, "we couldn't keep up with her."

That bit of information seemed to shock the mechs into silence. It was Arcee who rolled forward and pushed, "Did you at least see which direction she was going?"

"She's heading north...but she couldn't change her course at any time, so we don't really know that, either," Sideswipe glanced at his brother, "I don't think I've ever seen Demona that pissed before."

"And now she is a complete danger to the _humans _you have sworn to protect," Ghost snarled, making her presence known, "I warned you fools. A leopard can't change it's spots."

Ratchet turned to set her in her place, but Paradox beat him to it. The surrounding autobots' optics widened when the white femme struck, sending Ghost stumbling back with one swing of her fist. Paradox snarled, "You're thoughts were made clear when you blew a hole through her chest!"

Optimus tensed, blue optics flying to Ghost.

Ghost formed a blaster, raising it to point at Paradox, but the other wasn't finished yet. Paradox kept going, "You call yourself an autobot! A warrior of peace! But you would murder your own ally, betray your own faction!"

"_YOU _weren't there! You saw nothing! She murdered every single one of those mechs without a thought, as she was programmed to do! The dam has broken. You should have let me destroy her before she-"

"_Enough_!" Optimus ordered, using what Gears called his 'I'm not taking any more shit' voice.

Ghost seethed, cold blue optics locked on Paradox, who eased back a step and loosened up. The decepticon turned her gaze towards him, "So what are you planning to do, Prime?"

_We can't let her go...the condition she's in, she may slaughter every living creature that crosses her path... _The thought crossed his mind that they may not _have_ a choice. They may _have_ to offline her. _Primus..._

He raised his optics when a voice he hadn't heard in a while said, "Go after her."

Ratchet sputtered comically when they all turned to face Jolt, who looked exhausted but remained standing. Sundance was curled around his neck, little red optics wide with fear.

The junior medic was looking at Paradox with a certain intensity, like he was trying to send her some kind of message through his optics. Sundance shifted lightly, whispering, "I want momma back, my _real _momma..."

"She trusts you," Jolt told Paradox, "with her entire spark. I never understood...why...but she believes in you. Find her. Bring her home."

"Why are you placing your trust in me?" Paradox asked after a moment of staring at Jolt, "if these two couldn't catch her, what makes you think I can?"

"Because you followed her all the way to slagging Egypt when no one else had an idea of where she was," he raised a hand to press against his middle like it was causing him pain, "I know she's still there. I can feel her trying to fight in her spark, but she is losing."

Paradox studied his expression for a moment before turning to Prime.

"Go," Prime pushed, "I want to know as soon as you locate her."

The mechs barely had enough time to move back before she shot forward, folding down into her alternate form. Her engine roared as soon as her tires hit the ground, and she sped off.

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed. <strong>

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter 54**

_I can't see._

Demona struggled, finding the smallest measure of strength in herself. She struggled to fight the rage.

_It's okay, _she tried to reason, _I can feel Jolt now...he's alive...so are my sparklings..._

The wrath shoved back just as hard, wrapping around her and squeezing like a great fist of fire and smoke. Constricting, crushing...

_I'm dying._

Demona could feel her adopted mech creator reaching through, trying to regain the hold he had on her, but he was so far away...Jolt was awake now. She could feel it deep in her broken spark, in the parts that were still alive. He, too, was trying to reach her.

_'You're all going to die,' _the fire whispered back, _'kill them all.' _It squeezed harder, until whatever was left of Demona's will power broke. She retreated deep into herself until the rage eased up, no longer threatened, and spent the last of her energy wrapping her self tightly around what was left of her hope like a shield. The wrath returned not long after to try to peel her back from what she was protecting, but this time she would not give.

It was all she had left, and she wouldn't abandon it. Demona knew that she was the only thing keeping her young sparkling alive. The anger that had consumed her whole had yet to touch it and corrupt it. And she was slagging determined to keep it that way.

The rage burned and screamed all around her.

_Help me..._

* * *

><p>Paradox weaved through traffic, getting plenty of threats and complaints as she went from the surrounding humans.<p>

She blocked them all out, focused completely on finding Demona. She knew in her spark that the femme they all knew was barely holding on. Paradox knew what it was like, to have rage pour through your body like hot energon, touching and controlling _everything. _Of course, Paradox had embraced it, because it was all she had left inside of her.

_Demona doesn't have the spark. She's never known such hatred before...the force of it must have been what shattered her spark._ She increased her speed, breezing past an eighteen wheeler. She pushed on, following her spark.

She would find Demona. She knew she would.

_I won't rest, _she swore to herself, _until she has returned to us._

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for a super short update. My excuses are 1) I've been editing the rough draft of my book all day and night. 2) If I pushed this to be any longer I'd ruin it somehow. <strong>

**Anyway, much love to you guys! **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	55. Chapter 55

**Chapter 55**

"_WHAT THE FRIGGIN HELL!_"

Jo blinked when Shark actually took a step back from the seething red head. She had a feeling that things were about to get ugly, and fast. Shark was actually backing off, and that was a big, bright, cheery red flag of warning. Never mind the way Gears was literally shaking in her rage.

Everyone seemed to shrink back, even Optimus Prime, like she was about to explode. Gears tensed up like she was about to unload on their asses right then and there, but at the last possible minute, she deflated. Jo's heart clenched when she saw the woman almost fold into herself. Gears turned and walked away.

Silence fell over them as they watched her go, looking defeated. It was until she was around the corner and out of ear shot that Shark said, "I've only known her for a few weeks now...I've _never _seen her walk away."

"Gears _doesn't _walk away," Jolt said, voice soft and strained with exhaustion. Ratchet had ordered him to stay in the med bay, but the young medic just couldn't stay there. He couldn't rest without Demona somewhere nearby. His spark was with her. And although the real Demona was so weak and so distant she felt like a memory, he kept trying to reach her. He never stopped fighting his way through the strained bond.

Sundance didn't either.

"She's giving up."

They all looked down at Shark, who was looking off down the hall with a dark understanding in her eyes. Shark continued, "she can't keep her family together no matter how hard she tries."

Pale eyes lifted up to the autobots, "Your fucking war has ripped us all apart. It's destroying strong families and killing good people. When the hell is it supposed to end?"

No answer met her.

Slowly, Sundance unwrapped herself from her mech creator's shoulders and carefully climbed down. Jo watched her. Little Sundance had been awake since her parents had roused, and not once had Jo seen her bounce around or glide any where. It was like an entirely new child, one that was frightened and withdrawn.

Sundance walked past the two girls and went after her mimi.

* * *

><p>Gears leaned against the wall when every ounce of her strength just seeped out of her. Her legs stopped working, and she slowly slid down until she was sitting. The tears came to her poor eyes, causing the edges of her ugly scarring to glisten.<p>

She pushed a hand through her red hair tiredly.

A shadow fell over her a few minutes later, but she didn't bother to look up and see who it was. A red, pointed snout eased between her body and the wall. Sundance wrapped herself all around Gears like a living red shield, resting her head in the woman's lap. Then she unfolded her wings and draped them over her body to block out the light and the cold.

Gears leaned into her granddaughter, wrapping her arms around the thick plates of rose red, and held on.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for another short chapter. Next one will be better, I promise. <strong>

**Um, I added some new Sundance art to me DA. If you wanna check it out, go to my profile page and hit the link. **

**Hope you enjoy.**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	56. Chapter 56

**Chapter 56**

Demona was standing in the center of destruction when Paradox found her.

Her scarred battle mask was firmly in place, her red claw blades were deployed. Scarlet optics fell from the sky to rest on Paradox as she rolled to a stop behind her. Demona's optics narrowed.

Before Paradox could even finish transforming, the younger was across the distance between them and raising spinning blades to plunge into her spark. Paradox's armor was still shifting, so much of her insides were left vulnerable. She moved back as quick as she could, but Demona was proving to be much faster. Her weapons cut through the air so fast they whistled, arcing down towards her unprotected spark. Paradox braced herself, swinging an arm up to block her, even though she knew that it was too late.

Her hidden optics widened when Demona's blades froze mere inches away from her body. They were so close that the every tips of them scraped across Paradox's armor when it fell into place.

Paradox vented softly in relief. _She's still there._

She stared up into Demona's fierce optics, seeing the struggle in them. Paradox tried to reach her, "Fight it, Demona. You're strong enough. Fight."

The younger blinked before narrowing her optics and hauling back with a snarl. Paradox raised her arms and barred them in front of her face. Both arms throbbed with pain when Demona slammed the knuckles of her claw blades into them.

Paradox slammed the heel of her foot into Demona's shin, sending her stumbling back. She shot to her feet and formed her blades on impulse, slipping down into a defensive crouch. Demona came towards her. Paradox crossed her blades in front of her.

The sound of clashing blades filled the air like thunder. Face to face, Paradox could see all of the thin scars spider-webbing across Demona's horns and helm. She knew that most of these injuries had come from Megatron, and the knowledge made her seethe with anger. She pushed back when Demona tried to overpower her, matching her strength, "You are not Megatron. You are Demona, daughter of Angelus the autobot medic, _my _sparkling. There is just as much autobot as there is decepticon in you-_you _and _only _you can decide which faction you truly belong to!"

A harsh snarl ripped out of the others throat, and she shoved harder, nearly throwing Paradox on her aft. The Reaper held her ground though, locking the joints in her legs, "YOU are NOT a slayer!"

She began to slide backwards, feet leaving deep grooves in the earth. Nothing seemed to get past Demona's anger, nothing seemed to ease it.

"You have a mech, sparklings, a _family._ You have peace!"

_How the slag could she be so strong? She wasn't powerful when I faced her before, but no where near this level! _Paradox clenched her dentals. In a split second decision, she freed one of her blades, supporting the immense pressure on one arm for half a moment, and swung the dull end of the weapon at Demona's stomach. She didn't dare hit Demona's chest, and she put just enough of her strength into it to make the younger step back without denting her armor.

Paradox made a quick retreat, flipping backwards before Demona could retaliate, "So many have come to cherish you...I among them. You _must _fight."

Demona moved forward slowly this time around, like a predator stalking it's prey. There was no need to try to make this quick-they both knew that she was quicker than Paradox.

Paradox straightened. _Words aren't working...I have no choice. _The bone white blades slid back into her wrist armor. Her visor flipped up, revealing her red optics. She forced her battle routines to shut down and relaxed her tense frame. She said softly, "If you must kill, then take me first."

Her spark twisted at the cruel grin that seemed to shine in Demona's optics. She abruptly plunged forward, literally _gliding _across the earth she was so swift.

Paradox stared into Demona's optics, searching for any hint of the kindness they used to hold.

_Don't let it control you, sparkling._

Demona fell upon her, claw blades spread to cut through her armor and tear through her spark. Paradox did nothing. She simply watched, oddly numb.

Blade split through armor, sinking deep into sensitive wiring and cables. Paradox's optics widened.

* * *

><p><em>"Kill them all."<em>

Demona was motionless. She couldn't see. She couldn't quite think or feel. Her strength was spent on keeping herself wrapped around her sparkling to spare it. She was so small now, locked away deep inside a body that was no longer her own.

Once, the thought whispered through the raging flames to touch her, _Is this what it's like to go insane? Is this what it was like when Megatron turned?_

She could feel Jolt fighting through the strained bond to her. For a brief moment, he had actually touched _her, _not the wrath that had taken her place. It was enough to give her the strength to reach back, to let him know that she was still there.

_"Kill her."_

She tensed, what was left of her spark clenching weakly in alarm. The rage was growing restless again. A familiar voice echoed around her, distant and almost unclear, _**"Fight it, Demona. You're strong enough. Fight."**_

_Paradox...Angelus..._

She tensed more, uncurling the slightest like she was waking up. She was weak and sore, almost depleted of energy.

_Paradox._

_"Destroy her. Kill. Offline. Destroy."_

_No. _Demona started to push back, struggling to fight. Fear seized her.

_**"You are not Megatron. You are Demona, daughter of Angelus the autobot medic, MY sparkling. There is just as much autobot as there is decepticon in you-you and ONLY you can decide which faction you truly belong to!" **_Paradox pushed.

_Run, you moron!_

The fire laughed, a harsh, cruel laugh that reminded her of her mech creator.

Paradox kept trying, kept speaking. Demona was becoming more aware now, she could feel the impact of every blocked attack. But no matter how hard she tried to regain control... _Primus, it's too strong..._

_**"If you must kill, then take me first." **_The left over pieces of her spark cracked further at the painfully soft, almost loving tone. The fire was hysterical now, like this was all some game to it.

Demona fought harder, forcing herself to be strong. _I can't! Paradox, fight! Don't let me-_

She cut her desperate cries off when something brushed against her spark, soothing the renewed, sharp pain. A breath reached her, carrying a message;

_**'Don't let it control you, sparkling.'**_

She could sense her own claw blades flying towards Paradox's spark. She could sense that the saboteur wasn't even making an effort to move away or defend herself. _Yielding. She's ready to die._

_"Kill the creator."_

Somewhere, lost inside the pit of fire, Demona screamed.

* * *

><p><strong>Tried to give you guys a long, emotionally challenged update since the last two were super short and kind of lame...<strong>**I'm really trying to develop a good bond between Demona and Paradox...we'll see if it works or not.**

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed! Much love!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	57. Chapter 57

**Chapter 57**

Paradox stared at Demona, optics wide. Her hands flew up to press against the wound as energon started to spill down.

Her processor stuttered as she tried to figure out just _what _had happened.

Demona's legs gave out from under her and she fell. Paradox moved quickly, catching her by the shoulders and holding her up. Her frightened red optics flew down to look at the gaping wound, but it wasn't _her _injury.

At the last possible moment, Demona had turned her weapons against herself and plunged those lethal claw blades deep into her own stomach. Paradox pressed one hand to the deep hole, but the energon seeped between her fingers.

"Demona!" She whispered, "what..."

Demona yanked the blades out almost ruthlessly and snapped them back against the ground at an angle that they actually broke off. All five claws on that arm fell to the dirt. _Destroying her own weapons._

"Stop-" Demona cut Paradox off, looking up at her with agony filled optics that were a light red. The fingers of her unarmed hand came up to wrap around Paradox's armor.

She said, "I'm sorry...I tried to stop it sooner..."

_Primus. _Paradox started to push her down so she could take care of the injury, but Demona wouldn't let her go. Her optics almost seemed broken, distant. They were staring off past Paradox, as if searching for something.

"I..." Demona leaned towards her, like she didn't have the strength to hold herself up anymore, "why didn't you run...

"I'm not going anywhere," Paradox said softly, "I trust you."

"You shouldn't."

"Remember who you are, not what Megatron intended you to be."

Sad red optics lifted up to her's, "I tried to offline Prime."

"No, _you _spared him," Paradox shifted a hand into a set of tools. She pulled back enough to see and went to work, resealing split cables, "if you were truly weak, you would not have been able to stop."

"I tried to offline _you_." She was still partially leaning against her, "I thought..."

Paradox paused to look her in the optic, "You can't let it control you. Fight it."

When Demona said nothing, Paradox went on, "What made you stop, Demona? What made you stop both times you faced me?"

"I don't know..." Demona's optics grew distant again, "it was screaming...I couldn't...move or see...but I knew that you were there and that I was going to... I couldn't...stand it anymore...I couldn't hurt anyone else...not Prime...not...you."

"That is the part of you that matters, the part that's strong. You would die before you caused your loved ones harm, and thats what sets you apart from the decepticons. That's what makes you autobot. Remember, Demona. Never forget."

She could sense that the younger one was fading. Atop having five blades shoved through her middle, the femme had to be exhausted from being locked away inside her own body for weeks. Never mind the energy it must have taken for her to seize control again, energy she didn't have.

She didn't complain at all when Demona seemed to sink into her, no longer able to support herself. She fell deep into recharge shortly after. Paradox laid her back in the dirt and continued to work on her injury. _She'll make it, she's stronger than I was. _

She opened a link with Prime; _'I've found her.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	58. Chapter 58

**Chapter 58**

Sundance tensed, reacting to the way how the first bond she'd ever made flared open almost painfully. No longer strained. No longer distant. Hope and joy soared through her spark. She lifted her head from the coils of rose red that made up her body, lifting her wings to let in the dim light of her family's quarters.

She had been resting on her father's chest, both having sank deep into recharge after Ratchet nearly chased them to their berth. Beneath her, Jolt stirred also.

Sundance slowly stood up, reaching through the newly restored bond to lightly touch the spark of her femme creator. She waited, for Demona to reach back. A minute passed. Her father was blinking his weary optics up at the ceiling. Another minute. Disappointment filled her and she settled back down.

_'I'm here, Sundance.' _

The sparkling went rigid at the sound of her mother's voice. Demona reached through and gently wrapped around Sundance's spark, filling her with warmth and love. Sundance hummed softly, sinking into it happily.

She knew that her momma was speaking to Jolt, too, because he tensed and raised a hand to rest over his spark. Sundance smiled, _'Hi, momma. Are you better now?'_

Again, Demona took her time answering. Her hold on Sundance loosened slightly, like she was too tired to hold on. Her whisper reached Sundance anyway, _'Yes, sparkling...but I must recharge now.'_

She felt her parent pull back, and panicked. It had been weeks since she had last felt her femme creator's spark, her love. She wasn't ready to let it go, so she hurriedly grabbed on to her, _'Don't leave me!'_

Demona came back and wrapped her up tight in calm and love like a thick, warm blanket. Sundance sensed her mother fall into recharge shortly after, but not once did the older femme let go.

Sundance blinked and looked down at her mech creator to see a soft smile in his optics. He said softly, "I knew she would make it."

The dragon dropped her head and nuzzled into his armor, still singing softly in her joy. She couldn't think of anything to say, so she settled for grabbing his spark and pulling it in close so he was wrapped up in Demona, too. She shuttered her optics and smiled when his fingers ran down her back. She whispered to them, _'I love you.'_

* * *

><p>"I says," a rather familiar voice griped, shaking Gears from her sleep, "what's a sick man gotta do to get a damn drink around here!"<p>

Gears blinked several times before tensing. _Wait...that's..._She scrambled up, nearly falling out of the bed next to Pockets' and moving as fast as her old, scarred body could to get to the smart ass punk. Shark beat her to him.

"Rex!" Shark whispered, leaning over him. Rex's brown eyes softened when they fell upon her, filling with a gentleness that was uncharacteristic of him.

His tone softened, "What a beautiful sight to wake up to...hey baby, how have you been?"

Shark leaned down until their foreheads were touching, squeezing her eyes shut. The tears slipped through anyway, rolling down her face. It was the first time Gears had ever seen the woman cry. She'd never heard of such a thing, either. _Sharks aren't supposed to cry. This one never does._

As tired and weak as he was, Rex lifted his hands and put them on the sides of her face, using his thumbs to wipe away her tears, soothing, "It's okay, Rae. A man would be crazy to leave someone like you behind. I'm not going anywhere."

Gears stopped beside Pockets' bed, giving them some space. She watched in silence as Rex comforted Shark. She smiled for the first time in days.

Something shifted on the mattress behind her. Gears glanced back in time to see Pockets open his eyes. They were deep and clear and green, so beautifully green. He was growing stronger everyday, Ratchet had told her, he was finally making some progress on his recovery. It took a while to heal broken bones, but the medic had some serious tricks up his sleeves that were beginning to make a difference.

Pockets sent her a questioning look. She motioned towards Rex and Shark in response, and watched as he tilted his head just enough to see. She saw his eyes soften. Gears sat down on the side of the bed beside him and pulled his blanket up a little higher, turning back to the couple.

It was a really touching moment. Gears had never seen someone cry the way Shark did, silently with slow, small tears with her jet black hair spilling over her shoulders. And Rex...it was the first time Gears had ever seen him _this _peaceful. There wasn't a stupid smile on his face or a rude joke leaving his mouth. He wasn't starting his usual crap. He was simply watching Shark, like she was the only thing he saw.

_I can't believe it, _Gears thought quietly, _its like someone took off with the real thing and replaced them with these two beautiful, love-struck honest kids._

She pulled out of her thoughts when Rex finally moved. He removed his hand from Shark's face and lowered it...

...To reach around and take a big handful of Shark's ass.

Without missing a beat, Shark grabbed the crossword book between the beds and slapped him with it.

_Nope, _Gears grinned, _Same old Rex and Shark._

Pockets rolled his eyes.

* * *

><p><strong>:) <strong>

**Hope you guys enjoyed!**

**Demona and her family, shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	59. Chapter 59

**Chapter 59**

"Rex, what the hell are you doing?" Gears asked, laughing dull eyes fixed on the boy.

He froze mid step, back all bent and shoulders hunched like he had been trying to creep away, which was exactly what he'd been trying to do since he woke up. _The little shit. _She couldn't help but be impressed, though. The boy was actually hauling his ass out of bed to get up and cause trouble. And that was with his broken ribs and 'internal bruising'.

Rex laughed nervously, "Hi, misses James!" He turned and scratched the back of his head, "I was jut going to check on something..."

"Right," Gears pointed towards the bed, "how are you going to-"

"ZACHARY JOHN!"

Rex's face paled until he was whiter than a sheet of paper. Panic filled his brown eyes and a very small, very high pitched, "_shit_!" left his mouth.

"Just _WHAT_ do you think you're doing!" Shark had her hands on her hips, a rolled up magazine in one, and was giving Rex _the _look.

"Just comin' to tell you how beautiful you are, Shark baby!"

"Bed. _Now_."

"Aw, I haven't even gotten to talk to them once! I gotta see the boys!"

She narrowed her eyes and pointed her rolled up magazine at the bed. "_Now._"

In under a second Rex was back in bed and had his blanket pulled up to his chin. Jo laughed softly from her perch on the edge of Pockets' bed. Her youngest brother was passed out in her arms, face turned into her shirt. The poor thing had been crying earlier because he missed their mother.

"Jo," Shark started when she walked over to Rex and pushed her fingers through his wild blonde hair, "that big ass flaming semi wants you to round up your barnyard brothers. They're wrecking pure, unstoppable destruction in the hangar."

Jo sighed, "That sounds about right."

"I'll go with you. I need to pay a visit to that grouchy black truck..." She trailed off, using both hands to style his hair into his trademark mohawk. He grinned and tilted his head back to try to bite her but she was too quick for him.

"They do have names," Gears said, eyes narrowing slightly, but not in an aggressive way. "That 'big ass flaming semi' is the leader of the autobots, and could squash you with one finger, honey. You could show some respect."

"I'll start showing them respect when that buck toothed pair leaves me the hell alone," she answered with a look of her own. Rex's eyes brightened at the mention of his best robot friends.

Gears was about to tell her off when Jo stood up and said, "Let's go then. Gears, do you want me to ask Optimus if he knows how far Demona is?"

"Yes," the older turned her attention to the tiny blonde, "I haven't gotten a minute to ask him since he told us that Demi was back to herself."

"I can't wait to see her again," Rex chimed in, "I miss our Demi."

He watched the two girls leave. After the door slid shut behind them, silence fell over everyone.

Then, soft voice echoing in the room, Pockets scoffed, "Zachary John?"

"Shut up." Rex snapped back.

Gears rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p>Sundance poked her head around the corner. She couldn't see everything form this angle, but she could both, hear and smell, the old Seeker. She pulled back and looked over her shoulder.<p>

Her daddy was still there, sharing an almost tense conversation with Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Even though she had sharp hearing, they were too far off to hear. Her red optics softened when she spotted Jolt's rich blue armor, still feeling a certain love for it. Blue was a very pretty color. Red was too, of course. She was proud of her color and of her momma, who she thought was the most beautiful femme in the autobot ranks. That one called Paradox was second.

But there was just something about that blue. It didn't look right on anyone else but Jolt.

Sundance reached through her bond and squeezed her mech creator's spark to let him know where she was going. For a brief second, his deep optics raised to meet her's. He gave a nod, and she was off.

Sundance skirted around the corner, body slung low and wings pulled in tight. She knew Jetfire was in here, but she didn't know if he was asleep or busy smacking someone around with his cane.

Her spark lightened when the old mech greeted cheerfully, "Sparkling! I was just wondering if you'd come to see me."

Sundance bounded across the empty space between them. She stopped beside him and stood up on her rear legs. Jetfire leaned down with a smile, the plates of his beard clinking together. Sundance put her hands on his knee, "My mommas coming home!"

"Is she now?"

"And she's better," Sundance tilted her head, "I've missed her so much...momma says that she'll be back in a few days. I can't wait!"

She leaned up, pulling herself up to rest on his lap. She settled, "Tell me a story, Jetfire. Tell me about the one where you learned to fly."

She locked down on his armor with her claws when he fell backwards on his rear. He raised a hand to tap his fingers across his beard. Sundance listened to him retell the story like it was the first time she'd heard it.

* * *

><p><strong>Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.<strong>


	60. Chapter 60

**Chapter 60**

Demona was resting.

Her hidden optics were closed but she kept her senses tuned to her surroundings. Paradox was barked on her left, smooth white armor reflecting the afternoon sunlight. They were both in their alternates, settled on the edge of a packed parking lot. Humans were walking in and out of the grocery store, completely unaware that two cybertronian warriors were among them.

They'd been traveling since noon yesterday.

Demona had taken the punishment silently. Punishment, because her frame was almost frighteningly weak and sore. The journey was hard on her body. Aside from the fresh wounds she'd given her self, she could still feel the burn of the shot Ghost had put into her chest.

Remembering the femme, Demona's spark burned with anger. In a way, she was thankful that Ghost had stopped her. But there was more ways to immobilize a bot than just shooting them in the chest plates. Ghost had nearly killed her sparkling, and if she happened to cross Demona's path when she returned to base, Demona planned on having a little talk with her.

She tensed slightly when she felt Jolt stir on the other side of the bond. He was reacting to the anger in her cracked spark, panicking. He reached through and pulled hard at her spark. _He doesn't want me to lose control again. _

She sharp pull sent a shock of white-hot agony through her, worse than the aches and pains in her sore frame. Even though she had been shot in the chest, stabbed in the stomach, and locked away inside her own body for weeks, none of it compared to the damage her spark had taken.

It was cracked. Broken. Not from Ghost's aim, but from losing her mech, even if for a short time, and falling into the fire that erupted from it all. And it fragging _hurt_.

Jolt yanking on it wasn't making it any better, but she didn't tell him to back off. She simply reached back and gently squeezed his spark, _'It's okay, Jolt. I'm not going any where.'_

He didn't say anything, but she could feel his emotions through their bond. He was on the verge of paranoia. He didn't have much faith in her anymore. He didn't think she was strong enough. Demona retreated, feeling more pain than before. _What have I done?_

Demona fell back into herself, like she had been forced to do before Paradox had finally reached her. She could feel the pulse of her creation's spark against her own, strong and steady. Paradox had told her on the way here that it was a little mech. A son.

_What to name him? _Her processor seized the excuse to focus on something other than Jolt's lack of faith. She hunted through names, noting that her mate never let her spark go.

_'I'm sorry.'_

Her thoughts froze. Her spark tensed. Jolt gentled his hold on her, and the pain eased away. He repeated, _'I'm sorry.'_

She was quiet, waiting.

_'I just want you home,' _he kept going, _'I want you back here, with me...I can't...do this...anymore.'_

_'You don't think I'm strong enough,' _Demona pushed, _'that I will lose myself to this fire again.'_

No response reached her. She loosened up and sank down on her wheels in defeat, _'I'm going to recharge now, Jolt. I'll tell you when we leave for base.'_

He wrapped her up with his spark. She didn't pull away. Instead, she leaned into him, even though it hurt her. Demona's systems were slowing down when he finally whispered back, '_I'm the one...that's not strong enough.'_

* * *

><p>Demona onlined to sound of Paradox cursing over their communication's link.<p>

The saboteur seemed enraged, every inch of her sleek white alternate rigid. Demona soon saw why.

A pair of human boys were standing uncomfortably close, and one was running a hand down the Viper's aft. He was saying, "These are the most _badass _rides I've _ever_ seen. Or touched."

Demona kept an optic on them. _It'll be the last 'badass ride' you'll ever touch if you don't remove your hand. _But inside her spark, Demona was laughing. She'd been down this road several times before.

"You can keep that scrawny piece of shit," the taller one growled, walking past Paradox, "I want me a monster."

He raised a hand to smack Demona's aft. In a flash, her holoform materialized behind them. She narrowed her fake optics, "What in the pit do you think you're doing?"

Both of them froze, organic optics growing round. They turned around slowly. The one closer to Paradox laughed nervously, "Hi there, miss. This your car?"

"A hot ass girl to go with a hot ass car," the bigger one purred, "How 'bout it baby? You wanna go for a ride?"

She raised her left hand to show them what the humans called her 'ring finger'. His eyes widened again.

Shortly after they bonded, Demona and Jolt had left to help her brothers rebuild Gears' shop. Pockets had mentioned that they adjust their holoforms so that both had wedding rings. Jolt wasn't serious about it until some hot shot human male had tried to win her attention right there in front of him.

As soon as they had returned to the shop, he had made her sit down with him to tweak the adjustments on the holoforms. Now they both sported gold wedding bands.

She sent them a glare, and both kids took off.

Demona turned her hologram optics to Paradox, "You show a lot of restraint. I was expecting you to step on them or something."

"I was seriously considering it," Paradox answered her, tone grim. "Are you ready to continue our trip?"

Demona scanned the parking lot. When no one was looking, she dropped her holoform and revved her engine softly in answer. She waited for Paradox to pull out first, taking the moment to check on her sparklings.

Sundance was taking a nap on Optimus. She knew because as soon as she tested the bonds, Optimus reached back and she caught a glimpse of the sparkling curled up on his shoulders. Jolt was deep in recharge too, which was no big surprise. But he remained somewhat aware, and when he felt her checking on him, he tightened his hold on her just a little in response.

His works echoed through her processor; _'I'm the one that's not strong enough.'_

_Primus. _

She just couldn't understand the fragging mech, probably never would.

* * *

><p><strong>Last one for tonight. Hope you guys enjoyed<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	61. Chapter 61

**Chapter 61**

Sundance stared up at the sky.

She watched the clouds crawl across the horizon, basking in the warm sunlight. Her spark wanted to fly, but not once did she open her wings. They remained pulled in tight. Every time she even thought of flying, sharp, painful memories of Starscream filtered through her processor.

It was the first time she'd ever seen a decepticon, and the stories Jetfire and Ironhide told her didn't even begin to truly describe them. The deceptions they talked about seemed like powerful, mean enemies. Ironhide had once told her about coming face to face with a mech called Shockwave. Jetfire often told her stories of the earliest battles between mechs, before Cybertron split into autobots and decepticons.

Before Optimus.  
>Before Megatron.<p>

They had all been so fascinating to her before, stories she eventually ended up memorizing and loving. But...then they had been just that. Stories.

Now they were suddenly real to her.

Starscream...he had come for _her_, had done every thing in his power to offline her. He had torn through her like she was made of paper with his claws, and sent her crashing towards the earth. It was the first time she'd ever felt real fear. She knew that if her mother hadn't gotten there when she did, she would not be here now.

Ratchet had repaired her body as soon as he returned from finding Rex, but she could still feel the seeker's optics on her, still hear his voice. The sound of her armor tearing, her wings snapping and folding back when they couldn't stand against the wind. The feeling when she had realized that she couldn't fly, that her wings were broken and she was actually _falling._ It was all so clear in her processor, and it haunted her every time she looked up.

She wanted to fly, needed to, but she couldn't. So she just stood there and watched the clouds, wings pressed tight against her body.

"Why aren't you flying, sparkling?"

She jumped and twisted around to stare up at Optimus. His shadow fell over her when he stepped closer, dropping down into a kneel. Sundance turned completely towards him, standing up on her back legs to place her clawed hands on his knee. She tilted her head at him, "Momma hasn't talked to me in a while. Do you know how far away she is?"

"Not very far," he answered, "now tell me whats on your processor, Sundance."

"Nothing."

The look he gave her was proof enough that he didn't believe it. She vented sharply, "What!"

She moved back when he shifted, sitting down with his legs stretched out in front of him. His deep blue optics turned towards the sky, "I've never seen such pain in your optics. Tell me, Sundance."

Sundance tilted her head back to stare up at the sky again. She marveled at the soft blue, the fluffs of clouds...she blinked and she saw Starscream breaking through them with a sick smile on his face. She Shuddered, "I can't get him out of my head."

Optimus was quiet, waiting for her to continue. His kind, wise eyes never left her.

"Momma offlined him, though...he's gone, right?" This time she turned to look at him questioningly, "Starscreams gone."

"There wasn't much of him left after Demona attacked," Optimus confirmed, "he offlined shortly after Megatron appeared."

"Then why can I still see him? Every time I look at the sky, he's coming towards me."

"Starscream can't hurt you anymore, Sundance, don't be afraid of him."

She stared up at him before taking one last glance at the sky. She readjusted her wings, pulling them in closer, and started to walk away. A large hand stopped her, fingers gently scooping her up. He explained, "Ratchet wants to see you."

She said nothing. Sundance climbed her way up his arm to rest on his shoulders. She didn't lift her eyes to the clouds again.

* * *

><p><strong>: It's one of those blah days...gonna try to have chapter 62 up today, too.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	62. Chapter 62

**Chapter 62**

Demona could sense the turmoil in her sparkling. She reached through the bond and pulled her creation close, wrapping her tight in calm. Sundance reacted almost immediately, settling down wherever she was. _'I'm almost there, Sundance.'_

_'I wish you would hurry!'_

_'Very soon, sparkling.' _

She pulled back, turning her attention elsewhere when Paradox started to slow down behind her.

Somewhere along the way Paradox had fallen back to let her take the lead. She had been silently following, as if something heavy was laying on her processor. They'd kept a steady pace over the past hours...why was she slowing down?

Abruptly, the femme sped up. Demona let her pass, then followed her when she turned off the main road and into another busy parking lot. Paradox rolled to a stop, engine falling silent. Demona pulled in beside her, testing their link, _'Paradox, wha-'_

_'Shhh,' _Paradox hushed softly. She paused a minute, then, _'do you hear it?'_

Demona's thoughts quieted. She blocked out the gripes of her sparkling, focusing solely on their surroundings. She strained her audio receptors, tuning them up, and waited. It took a lot of concentration, but she heard it.

A very subtle, distant rumble. Her spark squeezed with warning, causing a small shock of pain to run through her. Demona didn't even register it, because the sound was growing louder. _'Where...'_

Jolt sensed her worry and leaned into her, trying to understand without interrupting her thoughts. She opened her spark to him unconsciously, allowing him to feel and hear what she was.

_'Underground,_' Paradox answered, her frame tensing as the earth began to tremble, _'frag it all.'_

_Underground...? What..._Demona's hidden optics landed on Paradox when she heard the tell-tale sound of shifting armor. The saboteur was transforming right there, in front of _everyone. _Demona's frame went rigid as the tremble turned into an all out quake.

Humans stumbled and hit the ground or took off running for shelter. Many froze in fear when they saw Paradox draw her bone-white broad blades. Scarlet optics were tracing the road, searching. She ordered, "Demona, transform!"

The surface of the earth seemed to split open with a roar. A mass of twisting dark alloys spun and rolled, some huge cybertronian creature emerging from the darkness.

_'Prime...' _she started, pulling on their bond, _'We're going to need some help down here.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Well...Megatron and Starscream kicked the bucket...never made it clear which bots were actually there when she went crazy...hmm...what to do with the situation...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	63. Chapter 63

**Chapter 63**

Optimus Prime ran down the halls, making his way towards the hangar. Orders had already been issued over the public communication's link, and now Jazz and Ironhide were running beside him.

"What about Jolt?" Ironhide was asking, "it's his femme that's in danger."

"Jolt is already on his way," Prime answered, "he left as soon as Demona went into combat."

Bumblebee joined them, taking up the rear, by the time they reached the hangar. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were already there, testing the weight of their blades. Sideswipe lifted his optics to the autobot leader, "I thought Demona offlined all the decepticons."

"Not all of 'em," Jazz chimed in.

Sideswipe shrugged, flipping his blades back into place on his wrists, "So, who's aft are we kicking today?"

Primes tone was grim, "Shockwave."

The twins sputtered. Sunstreaker repeated, "Shockwave! That crazy aft-" Sideswipe cut him off with a bewildered look, "I thought the dinobots took care of him."

"Apparently not," Ironhide grumbled, "from the way things sound, Driller survived also."

"_Slag_."

Optimus lowered his optics to the humans. Gears was there with a warning, "You watch your asses out there, I want all of you back in one piece," she looked right at him, "and you make _sure _you bring my girl home."

He inclined his head then turned towards the hangar exit, running forward, "Autobots! Roll out!"

He shifted forms and hit the dirt on wheels. Engines snarled and roared behind him as they raced away to Demona's location.

* * *

><p>Demona shot forward with a roar of her engine, plowing straight through an empty Ford Mustang. Paradox was running beside her, white armor gleaming beneath the sun.<p>

Ahead of them, the mass of twisting armor and cables seemed to uncurl, raising out of the pit like some huge snake poised to strike. The coils of it's vast body lifted and loosened, a menacing decepticon rising in the center. His armor was sharp and skeletal-like, mostly a black silver with tints of purple. But it was his face that really made her inner most frame freeze.

He had a single, big, red optic in the center of his face. It fixed on the femmes and seemed to focus. His stare was almost overwhelming, like falling into a cold bottomless pit. In a way, it was worse than Megatron's.

He stood straight backed, gaze never leaving them, as his companion arced it's long body and came crashing down towards them, the pieces of armor on it's face breaking open to reveal a round, wide mouth. The gears and rings spun around it's throat, a blood red glow emitting from inside.

Paradox leaped up into the air, pulling her legs in beneath her and twisting her body from the waist up. She swung her blades as hard as she could at a sharp angle, but her weapons barely cut through the decepticon's first layer of armor. She yanked free and sliced through one of the tentacles surrounding it's head.

Demona increased her speed, racing up an angled plate of asphalt and launching into the air. She pushed through her transformation sequence, her remaining claw blades extending and clenching around her hand, and fell upon them. The mech watched almost calmly. Demona swept her blades across the creature's armor, testing it.

It was thick, so thick that she could feel her claw blades straining against it. Above all the clanks and shinks of the twisting alloys, the sound of a weapon being powered up reached her. Acting on pure instinct, she shoved away and into the air, avoiding a blast that could have offlined her by mere inches. It was so close that she could feel the searing heat against her armor. Demona fell back towards the earth, landing in a crouch. Paradox dropped down beside her soundlessly, scarlet optics raised.

"I've never seen anything like it before," Demona commented, "What _is _it?"

"_It_ is designated Driller. The mech controlling it is Shockwave."

The mechanical beast plunged back into the earth. The deception riding it seemed to vanish beneath the coils of it's long body. Demona's frame tensed, broadening her stance so she'd stay standing as the ground shook. She felt a stab of recognition when Paradox mentioned the name. She cast a surprised look at the femme, "Shockwave?"

"Yes, although I'm not sure how. Prime sent the Dinobots to offline him several years ago, when the war was still raging on Cybertron. Not many can say that they've faced Grimlock's wrath and lived to tell the tale."

Demona turned her eyes to the ground, straining her audios and sensors in an attempt to track the thing. She took off after Paradox when she found it, stating, "Megatron mentioned him many times when I was a sparkling. One of the last triple changers, right?"

Paradox nodded, stepping over a swerving sports car, "He is one of Cybertron's most well known scientists, as well. He's slagging brilliant, but has a spark that's as dark and cruel as Megatron's. Of all the decepticons," they slid to a stop when the ground exploded open right in front of them and the creature Driller emerged once again. She finished, slipping into her battle stance, "Shockwave is the one that I never wished to face."

Once again, the mech appeared. His red optic landed on them, a feral hiss leaving his mouth.

_'Of all the decepticons, Shockwave is the one that I never wished to face.' _The words of Paradox the Reaper of sparks repeated in Demona's processor.

Her spark squeezed.

* * *

><p><strong>Kinda feel bad for that guy that owns the mustang...Whoops. <strong>

**Anyway...Real quick I wanted to say how much I appreciate reviews. I don't respond to them anymore because between writing these updates, college, a boyfriend, and keeping up with the house I kinda don't have an extra minute. But know that they don't go unnoticed, and I appreciate every single one of you. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	64. Chapter 64

**Chapter 64**

Demona leaped backwards, twisting her body to swing her claw blades around. Another one of the tentacles surrounding Driller's head fell to the ground. She caught a flash of bone white in the corner of her optics. A moment later the entire form of the beast trembled with impact.

Paradox shot up the length of Driller's spine, lethal bone white blade nicked and scraped from tearing through it's armor. She dropped almost gracefully on the highest curve and swung one blade across. Sparks flew.

Demona watched split her attention between watching the saboteur and keeping an optic on the mech designated Shockwave. Her cracked spark squeezed every time his gaze landed on her. She _knew _that this wasn't just any foot soldier.

She landed on the ground, rotating her blades once to loosen them up. Driller spiraled up higher into the air, carrying Shockwave with it. Demona tensed to attack when a scream stopped her cold. She twisted, forgetting to the decepticons in her haste to find the source. The voice broke and cracked, full of fear and pain. It was a familiar cry, one that clenched at her core and wouldn't let go.

Her optics fell upon the trembling frame of a man, tears burning trails through the soot and dirt caked on his face. He was on his knees, bloody and bruised, leaning over the body of a boy. A boy that wasn't moving. Debris was raining down from the shifting layers of Driller's armor. Dust and chunks of concrete and earth fell down, rushing towards them.

He was trying to gather the younger in his arms but his leg had been smashed somewhere in the chaos. His arm wasn't in much better shape. He was screaming for help, but everyone was too lost in their own tragedies to hear.

Demona's optics flew back up when a deep moan left Driller's body. He was plunging back down now, preparing to return to the earth. Paradox was scaling his body again, moving backwards now to avoid hitting the ground. Her hidden gaze was fixed on Shockwave.

"Bry!" The man yelled, "Bry, move!"

And before she could register what was happening, she sheathed her claw blades and dropped into a roll, swiping both out of harm's way. She brought them to her chest and layered her hands over them like a shield. A muffled shout of surprise left the older of the two, and she felt his small hands grabbing at her fingers to steady himself. Demona leaped away just as a deadly shot from Shockwave's cannon came rushing past.

She left them to Paradox for the moment, shifting down into her land alternate in midair. Both ended up in her back seat, the older cursing and shouting, "WHAT THE HELL!"

She hit the asphalt hard and swerved away from the battle.

"What the hell are you!" He demanded, dragging the boy into his lap as much as he could.

She answered, softening her voice when he jumped, "I won't hurt you, human."

He stared, shocked into silence, at her dash. Demona weaved between cars and buildings until she was satisfied with the distance-she would rather have driven them out of the city, but Paradox was only one femme. An extremely dangerous, seasoned femme, but still only one. She would need her back as soon as possible.

Shifting through her transformation sequence, she carefully held the pair in her palm and lowered them to the earth. He slid out with the boy in tow, still watching her with wide organic optics. Quietly, he asked, "Who are you?"

"I am Demona," she turned away, stepping into a run. She could feel the ground trembling as Driller and Shockwave traveled. She was changing into her aerial mode to have a better advantage when Paradox's sleek white form came running towards her, gaze turned towards the ground...searching...tracking..._following..._

Demona tensed, locking her toe claws down when the earth suddenly quaked beneath her with such a force it threatened to topple her. A hand wrapped around the plates of armor on her back and hauled her backwards just as the street split in half.

Fear wrapped around Demona's spark as she fixed her wide optics on the face of the man, catching the way how his eyes lost all hope, trapped with his friend in the very center. He stared at her without really seeing, lost. Demona pulled against Paradox to save them, but the femme was strong and almost easily held her in place.

Demona watched as the earth exploded outward, the pair of humans vanishing somewhere within all of the destruction. Driller ascended for the third time, carrying Shockwave on its back.

She snarled and yanked free, the cracks in her spark suddenly becoming painfully aware. Something dark and wrathful laughed inside of her, pushing at it's limits to be set free. With every passing second, it grew stronger. _They were supposed to live._

Her optics flashed. Paradox stood beside her, visor tinted red. She said, "He's laying waste to the entire city-there's not much left to defend."

"Defend it," Demona pushed, "defend it with your spark."

Hidden optics fell on her, "There's almost no point. Half the humans have been crushed, their homes shattered. This city is dead, sparkling."

Demona's spark squeezed warmly in her chest with recognition. Her gaze dropped to the ground just as a flash of vivid royal blue streaked across the uneven asphalt. "They must fall."

Jolt swung sideways, transforming so quickly she almost missed it. He was there in under a second, lethal whips charged. His bright blue optics landed on Demona only for a moment before the femme charged forward. Paradox glided along on her right, Jolt on her left.

_'Hold on, youngling,' _Prime channeled his strength into her, _'we're on our way.'_

* * *

><p><strong>This chapter was ridiculously hard to write. <strong>

**It's been a while...sorry. Had some last minute things come up for halloween...had to make some home-made costumes before this weekend from scratch...I have burns all over my hands from the hot glue gun and I've poked myself with the needle about thirty hundred friggin times...**

**Anyway, sorry. I hope you guys enjoy.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	65. Chapter 65

**Chapter 65**

Sundance shifted from side to side, wings pulled in painfully tight. Her red optics were turned up towards the clouds, narrowing when she caught a flash of lethal silver. She shook it off. Her spark was heavy in her chest, reacting to her creators. They were both deep in battle, struggling to take down some giant of a decepticon. She could feel her mother's wrath, her father's determination. It had been a while since they'd fought side by side like this.

_Fly. _

Sundance bounced from foot to foot. Her wings twitched and lifted an inch or two.

_Fly. Help. _

Her creators were warriors. Her mother was Demona, creation of Megatron. Even if he was the definition of evil, he was undoubtedly among the hardest mechs to destroy. From the stories she'd heard she knew that this was one key trait that Demona had inherited from him.

Her father was Jolt, one of the very few bots Ratchet took on as an apprentice. Aside from that, he was a good fighter. He was fast, and used this speed to disorientate his enemies. His electric whips were lethal, and he knew how to use them.

They were both quickly becoming some of Optimus's greatest warriors, up there alongside saboteur Jazz and weapons specialist Ironhide. They were dangerous alone, but deadly when they fought together.

Sundance knew all of this, but her frame felt cold and heavy with fear. She couldn't help but worry. After nearly loosing her mech creator, and after having her femme creator go insane for weeks...she wasn't about to lose either of them again.

_I have to fly. _

She could get there before the others. Jetfire had said it himself-she was the fastest flier he'd ever seen. She could get there, she could help.

She moved her wings. Starscream's red optics glared down at her from the clouds. She blinked in an attempt to get rid of him, but he remained, moving closer. _He's gone. Momma ripped him apart. He's not here anymore._

She continued to shift her weight from foot to foot. She crouched low, stiff tail swaying from side to side. She shook lightly to try to relax her body, then finally stretched her wings out on either side. They trembled from lack of use, feeling weak. But it was comforting, feeling the soft breeze on her metal feathers again.

She took a step forward to push off into the air...

...and dropped like a stone when she remembered the hopelessness she'd felt when Starscream's claws closed around her.

She went limp. _I can't. _

So she settled for watching the horizon, making sure not to turn to the clouds.

"I once knew a youngling that loved the skies with her entire spark," someone started, a huge shadow falling over her. Sundance slowly lifted her head to look at Jetfire as he dropped backwards on his rear. He stretched out his old legs, poking at a plate of fairly new armor with his cane.

The plates of his beard clinked together, wise old optics turned towards the sun, "Since the day of her creation she longed to fly. The winds and the sun was in her spark...she was a fearless flier, the fastest in her faction."

His optics fell to her, "I wonder where she is now."

Sundance vented softly and sunk deeper into the sands. She stretched out her neck and rested her head on the ground, "I don't know."

"Why aren't you up there, sparkling? The sky is where you belong."

"My wings won't work," she said quietly, "I can't fly."

"Bollocks."

Sundance blinked, lifting her optics to him again. Jetfire reached around with his free hand to scratch at his back, crimson optics still raised. He muttered a curse or two about 'wretched rust' and how it the 'blasted crap' wouldn't leave him alone.

"What?" She asked, tensing. She had an idea of what was coming, and mentally prepared herself for it.

He shifted rather quickly for such an old mech, back up on his feet and leaning towards her with narrowed optics, "I've never heard such nonsense leave your mouth, youngling."

On instinct, Sundance acted defensively. She stood up and moved back a step, her own optics squinting up at him in annoyance, "It's the truth!"

A finger dropped and poked her in the chest, "An enemy can take your limbs, he can steal your strength and threaten your comrades, but there is one thing that he is powerless against."

She fell quiet, waiting. A certain light filled the old Seeker's optics. He asked, "Do you know what that one thing is?"

Again, she said nothing. He leaned his weight on his cane and leaned down until his face was inches away from her's. He whispered, "Hope."

Sundance slowly sat back, giving him a weird look, "I don't get how that goes with my wings not working..."

"Don't you see? The sun, the wind, the clouds, the _sky, _it's all inside _you_!" He poked her again, this time a little more lightly, "_this _is your hope, your greatest power. As long as your spark soars with it, you will be stronger than your enemies."

The weird look intensified, "Jetfire, I don't-"

"But you've lost hope...you've let it slip away. This why, Sundance." He tapped gently on one of her wings, making it twitch, "there is nothing wrong with these wings...there is simply nothing left to make them fly."

Slowly, realization began to settle in her young processor Between Starscream, sparkshock from losing her parents temporarily, and then watching as her femme creator went insane..._No...hope..._She slackened slightly and shifted closer. She stood up on her back legs and spread her claws over his face plates, "What do I do, Jetfire?"

"Only you can figure that out, youngling."

She looked down, "I don't know anymore...I...I want to help them, but I..." She vented sharply in anger, despising herself for not being able to catch up to them.

"Battle is not something you go looking for, sparkling," He warned softly, "someday the time will come for you to take your place beside your creators as a warrior."

Sundance dropped down and shook lightly to get rid of the sand that had gathered between her plates of armor. She forced herself to look back to the sky, repeating the Seeker's words in her processor, over and over...

_Wait. _

She tensed when she spotted a distant shape on the horizon, suspended in the air. A seeker, maybe? She moved away from Jetfire and squinted, trying to see. Whatever or whoever it was, the armor was a dark purple.

Her spark squeezed. _Skywarp._

She'd never met the mech, but she'd heard enough stories. Starscream's brother, an equally cruel seeker with a black spark. She shifted, broadening her stance and locking her claws into the earth. Something switched on in her body, and she felt her sight sharpening as well as a sudden need to defend. Her wings moved on their own almost, stretching out a few feet to form some kind of shield over her vulnerable sides. Whatever this thing was that had turned on inside her, she knew that it was natural. _Defense routines, _her processor told her. _Protect._

Jetfire moved beside her, "Sundance, what-" His gaze lifted and fixed on the seeker, who hadn't moved. He was simply hovering there, directly behind the boundary that marked autobot territory. Jetfire went rigid beside her, getting to his feet and stepping in front of her, "_Bollocks!_"

"Is it Skywarp?" Sundance asked hurriedly, "a seeker?"

Jetfire squinted, entire frame poised to attack even though there was a great distance between them. It took a moment for him to answer, "No...this mech is too big to be a seeker."

"Too big?" She repeated, swinging around to look at him with wide optics, "then who-"

"He's leaving," Jetfire interrupted, "Sundance, go tell Ratchet."

She turned and bolted for base, spark spinning with fear. She reached through to her creators for comfort on instinct, but they were both still lost in combat.

* * *

><p><strong>Again, sorry for a late update...now that the whole halloween fiasco is done I should be back up to the regular two or three chapters a day...<strong>

**No, it wasn't Skywarp. Shockwave, if he had purple armor(which I seriously considered, but tf3 Shockwave was a friggin' badass so I kept him that way), would not be it since he's keeping the autobots busy in the city with Driller. HMMM...**

**I watched DOTM with my brother because he never got a chance to watch it in theatres...and if they'd kept Jetfire and Jazz alive along with the others that somehow managed to vanish between now and ROTF (*cough, cough* JOLT *cough, cough*) it would've made the 'big battle' so much better...**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me, Transformers does not.**


	66. Chapter 66

**Chapter 66**

Demona and Paradox moved with the same lethal grace. Jolt spared a moment to watch them work, amazed by their flawless motion.

They were two completely different femmes. Paradox was an elite saboteur, a fleet-footed ghost that struck in a flash of bone-white. She flipped and twisted, almost in the same fashion as Jazz, and never stopped moving. She ducked and dodged shots and strikes, dropping down and peeling back a plate of armor before leaping back. She found Driller's weak points and stripped them of their protective armor.

If Paradox was the greyhound, there and gone again in the blink of an optic, Demona was the rottweiler, tearing into the areas the older left exposed and causing mass damage. Jolt had never seen the two femmes in action side by side, but he understood now how the two of them had single-handedly held off Megatron's army in Egypt. Even though they were different, they worked as if they were of the same processor, moving in unison and wrecking havoc on the massive decepticon.

Two parts of a whole. Agile speed and fierce strength. He'd never seen a deadlier pair.

Jolt rushed in when Shockwave's calm expression shattered into one of rage as Driller let loose a pained groan. He shifted forward a step on Driller's back and raised the fusion cannon mounted on his arm. His single red optic followed the femmes easily.

Whips crackling with blue electricity, Jolt made his entrance. He reached through and squeezed the spark of his femme gently in warning. He caught her twist midair to face the deadly decepticon when he focused on her. Paradox caught it and changed course.

Jolt kept his hold on Demona, realizing just how strange her spark felt now. He'd noted it before, but now it was almost too odd to ignore. Something was off-he knew her spark was damaged. He could feel the constant ache she was feeling. Ratchet had also let him know after Demona had gone insane and blown through the autobot base.

Then, her spark had been almost impossibly small and far away. Now it was there, in reach, but it felt...wrong. Like she wasn't all there. And it worried the slag out of him.

_Not now, _his thoughts snarled when the heat of a cannon blast blazed past his face. He turned and swung out with his whips. The blade-like tips buried deep in Driller's armor. Jolt yanked back as hard as he could. Sparks flew, electricity spider-webbed over the decepticon's neck.

Driller quickened his pace, arcing into the sky before plunging back down. Jolt pulled back in an attempt to free his weapons before he was drug down into the earth with them.

A chill swept over him when he chanced a glance up to see Shockwave fixated on him.

* * *

><p>Demona separated from Paradox when she felt a shock of panic from her bonded. His hold on her spark seemed to tighten. She reacted immediately, rushing forward. Shockwave had diverted his attention towards the junior medic and was taking aim. Paradox was behind her, taking the moment to search the area. "The autobots are here-I can see Prime."<p>

Demona said nothing. She closed in on Jolt who was just now pulling free of Driller. She knew that he had seen Shockwave, but the decepticon had already fired a lethal shot of energy that was flying towards them. The medic wasn't moving fast enough.

She closed her claw-less hand around his chest armor and pulled with all of her strength, using her spark to pull at him too. They both fell back just as the blast slammed into the earth where Jolt had been standing. His hands appeared on her waist, keeping her from falling over. Their optics met for a second before they turned back to the battle.

Paradox dropped out of the sky and landed beside Demona. Her blades were nicked and dripping with fresh energon, "This one just won't die."

Shockwave let loose a slow, rolling growl when the roar of a semi echoed down the street. A streak of silver, and Jazz was leaping into the air with blaster in hand. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were right behind him. Ironhide stayed beside Prime. Demona smiled slightly behind her battle mask, _'You're late.'_

Prime gently tugged at her spark in response.

Shockwave lowered his fusion cannon, dark optic landing on Demona's adopted creator. Driller was turning to face them, but stopped when the smaller decepticon gave an order in cybertronian. Instead of attacking, the massive creature plunged back into the earth with a low moan.

Shockwave vanished somewhere inside the coils of armor, and down they went into the darkness.

Sideswipe started, staring at the giant hole in the ground with a confused look, "What? Did we scare him off?"

"Shockwave is decepticon down to the core of his spark, but he's not a moron," Paradox answered, "he knows he's outmatched. He won't be coming back this time."

Optimus transformed, taking a moment to carefully scan over the destruction before he started towards Demona. Before he could say something, she started, "I'm sorry, Prime."

"What for?"

She gave him a surprised look, battle mask sliding back. _Seriously? _She felt him smile through the creator-creation bond. He reached through and squeezed her spark softly. Demona glanced at Paradox when she assured, "The fault is not yours, Demona."

"We're just glad you're back to your old self again," Jazz piped in. He grinned at her, "you raise some serious slag when you're angry, don't you?"

Demona vented softly. Her going insane and nearly destroying Prime _and _base was not something to joke about. She took a step away from them and dropped her gaze down to her remaining set of claw blades. She closed them slowly, realizing for the first time just how many lives they'd taken in the past weeks. _I tore Megatron in half..._She moved back again when Prime reached her and raised a hand to place it on her shoulder. She sent him a half-hearted look of warning, and turned away. With an almost sharp flick of her wrist, all five claw blades shot back into their sheaths. The bands of armor around her arm were still spinning when she shifted forms and dropped down on four wheels.

She tried her hardest to ignore Prime's shock and Jolt's attempts to get her attention. She idled silently until her comrades transformed into their land alternates. Optimus led the line of autobots out. Demona drove sandwiched between her femme creator and her bonded.

* * *

><p><strong>I'm hoping we'll be seeing Shockwave again here soon...didn't really demonstrate just how deadly of a mech he is here. <strong>

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed. Much love.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	67. Chapter 67

**Chapter 67**

Gears ran a soapy sponge down Sundance's horn, "How in the world did you get so dirty?"

Sundance vented sharply, like Demona did when Mudflap and Skidz were up to their antics again. She shifted angrily from foot to foot, "Wheeljack asked me to help him with a new invention and it exploded in the mud. It got _everywhere._"

Gears blinked, "A new invention? Exploded? What the hell...I thought he was supposed to be one of more respectable bots."

Sundance rolled her little red eyes, "Nothing looks respectable when you're covered in water and mud."

Gears shook her head, "At least you weren't hurt. If that little accident had done damage, your mimi would have been all over his big striped ass..."

Sundance opened her jaws to say something when they both froze as a shout echoed down the hall and towards the wash racks...

"Oh, HELLZ YEAH!"

"Oh, we's gonna screw this shit UP," A second exclaimed, followed by a round of muffled giggles.

Gears narrowed her eyes, on full alert. She slowly lowered the sponge and put a hand on her hip.

A third hooted then abruptly paused, "Hey, what the slag is this?"

"...I have no idea. Poke it." The first said.

"Sundance, sweetie, you might want to cover your ears," Gears said walking towards the entrance. Sundance shook when she was out of range to get rid of extra water and mud.

Gears walked out and put both hands on her hips, "What the HELL are you three hoodlums up to!"

Mudflap jumped so bad he stumbled into Skidz, who started cussing up a storm in reaction. Rex started laughing nervously, "Um, hi misses James."

"We's was just-" Mudflap started. Skidz cut in, "We's ain't doin' nothin'!"

Gears wasn't falling for it, "Bull. Everyone in a ten mile radius knows that when you three get together, shit hits the fan."

"Well how 'bout this-"

"Hey misses James, do you have any idea of what this is?" Rex turned and yanked some piece of machinery out of Mudflap's hand and held it out carefully, "we just found it and we can't figure out what it does..."

Gears blinked. She wasn't expecting _that, _of all things. She slowly reached out for it, "Where did you-"

"Put that back!" Sundance shouted, bounding towards them with a wide-eyed look, "that's one of Wheeljack's experiments!"

"Then why'd he leave it out..." Gears blinked again when the sound of big cybertronian feet echoed down the hallway, along with a confused voice, "Now where did I put that turbo energizer..."

_Turbo what? _She had a seriously bad feeling. Wheeljack emerged from around the corner and froze when he saw who had the machine, "What are you-Don't press the button!"

"What button?" Mudflap asked. Skidz leaned forward, "He means this big red one yo stupid ass!"

"I ain't no stupid ass!" the other huffed, "Imma wipe the floor with yo bitch ass!"

The continued to fight. Wheeljack was running towards them now with a panicked look on his face. In the middle of it all, Rex leaned forward and poked the big red button, "This one, right?"

Gears had enough time to do one thing before a blinding light filled the wash racks. Her shout echoed through the halls, "REX YOU DUMBASS!"

* * *

><p><strong>:)<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	68. Chapter 68

**Chapter 68**

The light was followed by an intense heat. The air became so hot Gears' lungs became heavy and small in her chest. _If we survive this, _she thought, _I'm kicking that skinny boy's ass!_

She screwed her eyes shut, giving in easily when someone pushed down on her back. Heart pounding, she huddled beneath the armored shield that appeared above her.

The heat and light lasted for several seconds, intensifying so much that for a minute she thought they'd all turn into piles of ash. Just when she reached the breaking point, it let up.

Slowly, the light faded and the heat died. Gears shifted, cracking her eyes open just enough to see beautiful sunlight bleeding in through blade-like metal feathers. _Feathers. _She reached up and touched them, "...Sundance?"

A red nose prodded at her side. Her granddaughter confirmed, "I'm here, mimi."

_Four years old and she's already a little hero..._She smiled softly for a moment, lowering a hand to run her fingers over a long sleek horn. The smile disappeared when one of the twins whistled, "_DAMN _thats some good shit!"

"Where you been hidin' that, Wheeljack?" Skidz added.

Gears stood up when the wings pulled back and shot them a hell-fire glare. Rex shakily got to his feet, hand clenching his broken ribs. He looked completely lost. Wheeljack was standing only a few steps away, slowly lowering his arms from his dimmed optics.

"What...just happened?" Rex asked, "I feel like Jesus just b-slapped me across the face!"

Gears sucked in a deep breath and unloaded, "WHAT THE HELL! Rex-what-God, _who the hell DOESN'T_ know the number one GOLDEN rule when it comes to unknown machines! _DO NOT PRESS THE BIG RED BUTTON!"_

He blinked at her, "Wow, misses James, you get mean when you're angry!" He stomped towards her a few steps, curving his hands into claws, "**ROAR**!"

She blinked and stepped closer to get a look at his eyes. The twins stopped and looked at him like he was crazy. Gears squinted at him, "Zachary Rex John James, are you stoned?"

He gave her a horrified look while his two friends fell to the ground in a laughing heap of buck toothed alien.

Sundance shifted to stand beside Gears and stretched out her neck to sniff the alien machine left on the ground, which was smoking. She snorted, "I thought the whole base was gonna fall down."

"Well..." Gears glanced up at the sky where there should have been a roof.

Rex looked up and actually stumbled back a step, "Ha! Puts a whole new meaning on raising the roof! That's friggin' funny!"

Mudflap and Skidz paused long enough to listen before laughing harder. Gears gave him a confused look then raised her eyes to Wheeljack, "What the hell just happened?"

He looked lost between being afraid, pissed, or just flat out laughing at the situation, "The energizer was meant for a cybertronian air craft that the wreckers have been building on the coast. It converts a certain chemical into a energon-like substance that helps power some of the key components of the main engine-" _What the hell is he talking about? _She fought the urge to interrupt and focused on catching what she could of what he was saying. "-of this aircraft. When the boy touched the button, it released the chemical into the air. It's not lethal, not even harmful to us, but it does disillusion earth's organic life forms for a time."

"So...he's high."

He hesitated, reaching down to pick up the odd object, "Yes."

Gears pushed a hand through her hair, "Shit. All we need is a high Rex running around causing trouble."

"WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED!" Someone shouted, running towards them. Gears turned her attention to a wild-eyed Shark, who kept going, "It felt like the damn sun ran into the earth!"

"Blame this one right here," Gears pointed at Rex.

Shark blinked when she spotted her significant other who was still laughing at his own 'raise the roof' joke. Her anger shifted to a new target. In a matter of seconds, she was in Rex's face, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU THINKING!"

He stopped laughing and stared at her.

"You're ass is supposed to be in bed!" She kept going, "I'm about to beat the tar out of you, you-!" Rex cut her off by leaning in and kissing her.

Gears turned on Wheeljack next, "And YOU shouldn't have left something like that laying around!"

He jumped at her tone and sent her an innocent look, "It's harmless by itself!"

"Besides the fact it makes humans HIGH," Gears started, "Rex is horrible on his good days, and now you got him high? There's no telling what shit he'll start now!"

Shark stepped back and put a hand on Rex's chest, keeping him out of kissing range. She raised a thin eyebrow at him but there was a tiny smile on her face. Rex had this dreamy distant look in his eyes and a big stupid grin. He purred.

"Shark, you get that boy back to the infirmary," Gears said. She turned on the twins, who were still rolling on the ground, "and you two need to straighten up and get your asses out of here before I find me a plank of wood and some barbed wire."

They froze and took off so fast you'd think Ironhide had a cannon up their ass. Gears shook her head. Wheeljack started to creep away, but she caught him, "Oh no you don't! Our talk isn't over yet!" She opened her arms to gesture towards the now roofless washracks, "just how do you explain something like this to Optimus?"

"Aw he's just tryin' to put in a skylight!" Rex called as Shark pushed him along back in the direction of the infirmary.

Gears opened her mouth to add something else when Sundance perked up beside her. The rose red dragon took a few hurried steps forward, singing, "They're home!"

And off she went, bounding down the hallway.

Gears watched her go, "Who's home?"

"Optimus and the others," Wheeljack answered.

_...Demona._

Gears left him without another word, moving as fast as her crippled body could go.

* * *

><p><strong>I told you I'd be throwing some explosions somewhere in the chaos the chevies and Rex start...<strong>

**I hope you guys enjoyed it! much love!**

**Demona and her family, Shark, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	69. Chapter 69

**Chapter 69**

The drive back to base seemed ridiculously long. No one spoke a word, making it an uncomfortable trip.

Demona's spark was aching.

The cracks in her spark were at it again, somehow strained more than what she had grown used to. It was a constant, sharp pain. But it was one she could handle. It was a different pain that was really effecting her, one that she couldn't simply ignore.

Demona had turned her back on Prime.

It wasn't enough that she had lost her processor and went on a killing rampage and attacked her own comrades and family. And that was _after_ brutally destroying the majority of remaining decepticons, Megatron among them. The thought roused memories, dark, angry, agonized memories.

Megatron's optics were as red as spilled human blood, glowing with a fierce light. The first pair of optics she'd ever seen. Cold and cruel, full of such black wrath. To think that she had loved him once, that she had, at one point, lived for him and him only. _My creator. _

The fire inside shoved the memory to the front of her mind. Megatron seated on his throne, Demona standing above him. For the very first time, he was in _her _shadow. The way how he tensed to rise and face her. The way how her energon stained hand came crashing down on his face, shoving his head back so hard it broke the back of his chair. Lethal claw blades, the ones he had designed for her frame, drilling through his thick armor and tearing through his body.

Fresh energon had spilled through his serrated dentals. He made no attempt to break free or fight, because he knew in his spark that there was no point.

Demona remembered clearly, through the hysterical rage that had caged her, the pride that filled his optics. The very same he'd shown the day of her creation. Then he had grinned at her, speaking his very last words.

_"You are __**my **__creation."_

Demona shuttered her hidden optics, relying on other senses to stay in line between her comrades.

_**You are my creation.**_

_I have done nothing but prove that. _

Demona scrolled through the long list of things she'd done. Beginning with the decepticons a few weeks ago, ending with walking away from Prime.

She had felt the ice cold shock that had squeezed his spark when she'd turned away. She knew that she had hurt him by doing it...but how could she face him or the others? _They were making jokes. _

_I could have hurt them-offlined them. And they're...laughing._

Primus, she'd dug herself a deep hole.

She snapped back to the present when someone bumped into her. It wasn't enough to push her off course, but it wasn't light enough to go unnoticed.

Paradox fell back into place on her left smoothly. They'd changed formation when they started traveling through the old back country roads, the quickest way to base. Prime was in front of her, Jolt behind her, and Paradox beside her. Demona realized then that she was completely surrounded by her family. Prime, the closest thing she had ever had to a real mech creator. Paradox, the mother she'd been missing her entire life. Jolt, her bonded and the light of her spark...

The different pain doubled. _Why?_

Why did they trust her so much? Didn't they understand?

_I wish you wouldn't..._

_'Wouldn't what, youngling?' _Prime asked softly. Demona tensed at the sudden contact, completely unexpected. She must have been so lost in her thoughts that she left herself open.

When she didn't answer, he started, _'No one blames you, Demona. What __happened was completely out of your control. It's alright-'_

_'No, it's __**not**__,' _She snapped, _'I could have __**offlined **__you, Optimus. I could have __**hurt **__you. I could have done it to anyone-Sundance, Jolt...Gears...'_

He tensed when she used his first name, something she never did. Demona vented softly, finishing, _'How can you trust me now? How do you know I won't lose it all over again and actually go through with it?'_

_'I trust you because I know who you are, and you would never harm a bot or human you care for. Your spark won't allow it-you're too gentle.'_

_Certainly felt gentle when I split Megatron in half, _she thought harshly.

She continued, _'The point is that I became a threat. A threat that YOU should have taken care of.'_

Again, shock filled him. He suddenly felt distant. He said nothing, so Demona kept going.

_'I had no control. I was a prisoner in my own body. It took everything I had to break free long enough to save Paradox, and even that nearly exhausted my spark to the point of offlining. I pushed it aside, I did NOT defeat it. It's still here, I feel it deep in my frame. My 'gentle' spark is broken. I'm not strong, Prime. Not anymore.'_

_'What...' _His voice sounded strained and soft, so far away from the usual deep baritone he had, _'Demona, what are you saying?'_

_'If I lose control again I...' _she paused when she felt Jolt prodding very gently at her. She knew he could hear the conversation through her, and was surprised he hadn't said anything yet. She took hold of his spark and pulled him closer.

_'I won't be able to stop myself.'_

She watched as the big mech slowed down ahead of her, like her words had physically hurt him. She didn't have time to think about it though, because it was then that the first autobot hangar came into view. And there, running as fast as she possibly could, Sundance was making her way towards them with bright, hope filled optics.

Thoughts left her in a rush, and she transformed so quickly her wheels were still spinning when she stood up. Sundance glided across the earth, already showing the grace adult femmes were known for. Demona dropped to a knee and reached forward. Her sparkling channeled all of her strength into her limps and leaped high into the air and right into Demona's hands.

Sundance fell still, staring at her with wide, round optics, like she wasn't quite believing what she was seeing. Demona held her out and raked her gaze down the sparkling's body to make damn slagging sure nothing had harmed her since she was gone.

"Momma?"

Demona looked into Sundance's optics. The little dragon was stretching towards her now, reaching out with small red claws. Demona brought her closer and the sparkling squirmed around until she was half hanging down. She placed her claws on Demona's cheek plates. She whispered, "I missed you, momma."

Demona reached for her sparkling through their bond with all of her strength, wrapping her little one up tight. Sundance hummed softly in response, slipping out of her fingers and curling her body around Demona's throat cables. Demona kept a hand raised to steady her, speaking to her through the bond.

"Dem baby!" A second voice called in raw relief. Before Demona could react, a warm human body had flung itself across the ground and was holding on to her toe claws as tight as she possibly could.

Demona blinked in surprise and confusion.

She'd half expected her sparkling to come running out to greet them, but not Gears. Since the battle on Diego Garcia four years ago, her human mother had been stiff and slow. The fight had left heavy wounds on her, wounds that still effect her to this day. As busy as she was, Gears had been forced to slow down because of it.

Demona hadn't seen the woman move so fast in four years.

Carefully, she scooped the human up in her hand. Gears, acting just like Critter when he was younger, latched on to her fingers instead and looked up at Demona with wide, teary dull eyes, "Where the hell have you been?"

"Here and there," Demona answered, raising to her full height and starting towards base, "how are my brothers?"

Gears started talking, going into full detail on how her sons were doing, along with Rex.

Demona listened. She struggled to ignore the restless pain in her spark, growing with every passing moment.

* * *

><p><strong>Eh...<strong>

**will probably have another up tonight. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me.**


	70. Chapter 70

**Chapter 70**

"What the fragging pit happened?" Demona asked, red optics squinting at the rising cloud of smoke that hovered above the newly remodeled wash racks.

Gears sighed, pushing a scarred hand through her red hair. It was Sundance that piped up, still wrapped snug around her neck and refusing to let go, "Uncle Rex pushed a button."

Demona narrowed her optics. _Well, there's my answer..._

Ironhide barreled forward when he spotted the smoke, followed by Prime who was giving orders, thinking that base had been attacked. Jolt hung back, reluctant to leave her. There was a storm of emotions in his spark, she could feel it. The only clear signal he was sending to her was that he was tired and he just needed to be with her right now. He looked lost, so she closed her hand around his and squeezed.

He snapped out of his thoughts, focusing on her. He said softly, "Were you...serious?"

Ratchet walked out of the hangar just in time to meed Prime and Ironhide. He had an annoyed look on his face. When the mechs asked what happened, he said one word, "Wheeljack."

They relaxed immediately, or at least a little anyway. Ironhide started off with a round of curses and Prime pressed a hand to his face. Gears raised an eyebrow, "They act like this happens all the time."

"It does," Jolt confirmed, though his gaze was still on Demona, "Wheeljack is famous for his inventions...blowing up, anyway."

"Was anyone hurt?"

"Well, Rex got high," Gears answered. She nodded when she saw the look that came over Demona's face, somewhere between horrified and amused, "He was loopy so Shark drug him back to the infirmary...other than that everyone turned out fine."

"Do these human friends of yours get into trouble like this often?" Paradox asked.

Gears jumped, "Damn! I didn't see you...wait a second, you're Paradox aren't you?"

The femme inclined her head in confirmation, then turned her hidden optics towards the autobot CMO as he made his way over. Ratchet fixed his blue optics on Demona, "Welcome back, youngling. How are you..."

He trailed off as he studied her expression. Jolt tightened his hold on her hand when the older mech softened his optics and his voice, "You're exhausted."

Gears looked up, "Hell, who wouldn't be?"

"I'll come to the med bay in the morning," Demona offered.

He raised a finger to point at her, "First thing."

She nodded and let Jolt lead her into base. Paradox hung back when Ratchet turned to her and started firing off a round of questions.

Gears patted Demona's hand, "You can leave me here, sweetie."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah...I still gotta go yell at Wheeljack for a few more minutes."

Demona crouched and carefully set the woman on her feet. Before she could straighten, Gears stretched up, standing on her toes, and pressed her fingers against Demona's cheek. She said softly, "I knew you'd come back to us, Demona. You always do."

Demona felt her spark squeeze softly when the she added, "I never stopped believing in you."

Demona watched her walk until she left the hangar before she straightened. Again, she followed Jolt down the halls and to their quarters. As soon as she touched the berth, she was out. She didn't feel him settle behind her or the strong arms that closed protectively around her.

* * *

><p>"<em><strong>You are MY creation."<strong>_

The darkness was heavy and hot. She felt slow, weighed down. Her light red optics scanned the inky black surrounding her. Part of her broken spark waited for the sun to rise in the distance as it often did in her dreams, but her world remained dark.

There was no wind, no light, no sound, but the shuddering pulse of her own spark in her chest. Instincts told her to be on full alert, to be ready to defend. _Protect your sparkling. _

She crouched slightly, clenching her fists and raising her arms to stop any attacks. The quiet was almost scary. It reminded her of the brief moment of silence that had fallen over the earth when she'd torn through Megatron. A cold, dead, silence.

She listened and waited, every sense strained. She was so in tune to her surroundings that the voice made jump;

_**"I see you, Demona."**_

_Megatron._

She shifted back a step, battle mask sliding into place soundlessly. Her claws ached to be released, to rip and tear. She swung around when a breath of sparkless laughter echoed on her left.

_**"The allspark will save our kind, but YOU will save our cause."**_

_Stay away!_

Demona couldn't stop the cold growl that left her. The laughter grew louder, this time on her right. She recognized it easily, and it made her frame freeze in her body.

_**"It is time to prove yourself, Demona."**_

"No!" She snarled, "you're gone! I destroyed you, _twice_!"

Sharp metal claws grazed the armor around her neck. Demona jumped away on impulse, swinging her arms out on either side of her. Claw blades shot out and spiraled around her fists.

_**"My new little soldier."**_

Her toe claws punched into the ground when the scrape of claw on armor turned into a full out shove, threatening to send her flat on her face. She locked her joints and swung around from the waist up to swipe at her enemy.

She hit nothing but hot air. Dark, rolling laughter echoed all around her.

_**"You will do, young one. Yes, you will do."**_

"I am NOT your creation! I don't belong to you!"

_**"Come to me, Demona. Your time has arrived."**_

"_NO!_" All around her, fire flared up in a thick, impenetrable wave, lighting the darkness. But she was no longer paying attention to her surroundings. She was focused solely on Megatron, determined to shut the slagger up.

_**"You are the weapon that will end them."**_

Her insides went cold. Her optics widened, finally falling on the scene of destruction around her. Cybertronian corpses littered the earth, shredded and torn. The dirt was soaked with their life force. Dark sparks were scattered at her feet. Slowly, she raised her claw blades.

_**"The anger will change you, finish molding you into the decepticon I have worked so hard to create."**_

_Energon. _Her claw blades were streaked with it. It still glowed and pulsed. Her processor slowed down. Her spark nearly stopped in her chest.

_**"Good, Demona...that rage inside of you...it will drive you to kill those pathetic autobots."**_

She stared down at her claws. The red of her armor melted and dripped down until her blades were a cold silver. Everything became clearer, and she realized that the bodies belonged to femmes and sparklings. Innocent lives, taken by her hands.

_I...did...this..._

_**"You are MY creation."**_

Demona stared, trying to understand. But her processor wasn't working, her broken spark seemed to die.

She turned her optics up and shuttered them. Megatron's laughter was louder this time around.

"Leave me alone," She whispered.

The sky shattered into pieces as she came crashing back to reality. She felt her real body start up in reaction.

Her optics onlined slowly, blurred at first. She felt something tighten around her. She tensed up until she realized that it was just Jolt. He was still lost in recharge. Sundance was curled up against her chest, also dead to the world.

Demona tried to settle back down, to fall back into recharge, but the memory of what she'd just seen and heard was fresh on her processor and spark. So she slipped away, moving in complete silence. Once she had eased her way out of her mech's hold, she slid her sparkling closer to him without waking her, then went on her way.

* * *

><p><strong>There was no real direction to what Megatron was saying in her dream. They're all from The Guardian, except the first and second one...the first being from TLF and the second being from Dear Sister. <strong>

**Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed...much love.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	71. Chapter 71

**Chapter 71**

There was a heavy wind outside, sharp and cold against her armor. But she'd seen many cold nights. Cold no longer bothered her. She'd been lost to all feeling since the day of her rebirth.

Paradox was perched on the very edge of the roof of the first autobot hangar. She was kneeling, scarlet optics scanning the horizon. Always on alert, always searching. One of her most crucial core instincts was to always be on guard. She'd been caught one too many times unprepared by decepticons in her first and second life.

Her attention turned directly below when she sensed movement. She tensed slightly when Optimus Prime walked out of the hangar and stopped directly below her. She felt a sharp, painful pull on her spark, reminded once again that _this _mech, the autobot _leader, _had once been one of her best friends when they were both still in the academy. Before he had his title and before she was mad with the need to slaughter every decepticon in her sight. _This bloody war has changed us all._

He stood straight-backed looking the part of a leader, but there was something different about him. He seemed worn, heavy. Exhausted. Nothing like the mech he was in front of his soldiers. And it worried her.

She shifted forward an inch to drop down to the ground when a second bot emerged. She felt this one before she rolled out of the hangar, folded down into her alternate mode. Demona passed both of them without a word and picked up speed until she was racing away, rose red armor reflecting the moonlight almost sharply.

_Go after her, _Angelus pleaded, _talk to her. _

Paradox tensed the cables in her legs to pursue, but stopped and settled back on the roof instead. _No._

Below, Prime stepped forward to follow the femme. Paradox dropped her red optics to him, "Words can do nothing more for her, Prime."

The thirty-foot tall leader of the autobots jumped at the sound of her voice. He went rigid, turning to face her, "...Paradox."

She watched as he relaxed. His rich blue optics turned back to the road to follow Demona. Paradox could see it in his posture that he still wanted to race after Demona, to help her. So she said, softening her voice, "I have already told her all she needs to know."

"I don't..." He hesitated, turning his gaze back up to her. His optics were confused. He suddenly looked younger, like the mech she had once called friend. "I don't understand."

"She's lost."

"Then how do I find her?"

Paradox stilled, studying his expression. There was a deep pain in his gaze, like he was being forced to watch his own creation leave him. The irony of the situation hit her then. Once upon a time, she and Prime had been as close as brother and sister. After the war began, they'd been separated. Megatron, Prime's brother, found Angelus and forced her to bear his sparkling. Now they were all here. Prime had become something of a parent to Demona, he had been there for the youngling longer than Paradox ever had. Demona had brought them back together. And although he was still completely clueless on who she truly was, Paradox was grateful in a way.

Her spark was settled for the first time in years. Not wrathful, not numb. Surrounded by bots and a life she had loved once long ago and not insane with anger. _She brought this to me. _

Paradox stood up and stepped off the edge. She landed gracefully on her feet and straightened, "You don't."

Again, the confusion.

"It's a matter of her finding her way back to us," Paradox explained.

"What is she to you?" He asked, turning the subject around on her, "I know you care deeply for her."

Paradox looked him in the optic, "Everything."

Her answer seemed to surprise him. Before he could put things together in his head and figure out her big secret, she added, "I wouldn't worry too much, Prime. She's got you."

Paradox left him then, walking away and into the night.

* * *

><p><strong>:) I can't wait for everyone's reaction when the 'big secret' gets out.<strong>

**Anyway, Primes out of character her, but I kind of wanted him to be...so there.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	72. Chapter 72

**Chapter 72**

The sands shifted beneath her toe claws.

Demona stood alone, red optics turned towards the sky as the sun slowly rose. The blackness seemed to crack and break apart, thick streams of warm, soft sunlight pouring through. Vivid bands of color, soft clouds glowing gold...She watched every moment of it.

_**"You are MY creation."**_

"The only thing you ever gave me was a fighting spark," she whispered. Still, the image of her own claw blades, stained with innocent energon, burned in her processor.

Her spark clenched in reaction, screaming in pain and anger. How could she have let it happen? A dream was a dream, but the fact still remained that she had sparklessly destroyed mechs. Decepticons, yes, but she had ripped their sparks from their chest and watched their energon drain. That wrath had burned and laughed hysterically, pushing for more.

_His creation._

_His weapon._

_His tool. _

A soft, low growl rolled out of her throat.

"When I onlined this morning, I expected to have my femme at my side."

Jolt's voice didn't surprise her. She had sensed him approach a few moments ago. His tone wasn't sharp or angry, but quiet.

"I couldn't recharge."

"Bad dream?"

_You don't know the half of it. _She said nothing.

He moved closer, standing behind her. Finger tips brushed her hand, "I love you, Demona...please speak to me."

"I'm not sure anymore," she started.

"About?"

"All this time...I have been fighting Megatron, thinking that I could someday defeat him and save my family and my home. I never realized...that I couldn't stop him because he was inside _me_. How do you take down an enemy when you are the same?" She never took her optics from the sky, "I don't know what I am anymore, Jolt."

He took hold of her arm, grip tight but not painful, and turned her around.

"I can't believe this," he all but growled, "I can't believe _you_, after _everything_ thats happened, are saying this."

He kept his hold on her, electric blue optics narrowed, "How long have you fought the humans and other autobots, how many times have you told and proved them that you are _nothing _like _him_! That you are different, that you have the spark of an autobot!"

"Jolt-"

"You are not Megatron, and you never will be. You are not his tool, you are not his weapon. You are stronger than that pile of slag will ever be-"

"_Jolt!_" She snapped. He cut himself off, staring at her. He didn't stop her when she stepped back and pulled free, "I _failed_, Jolt!"

Before he could answer her claw blades shot out in a flash of red and silver. She stretched them open, revealing the stains left from the bath of energon. She had yet to go to the wash racks and clean up, so the thick spots and lines were clear as day. She raised them for him to see, "I lost the most important battle! I lost all control, and in my rage I took lives-"

"You offlined decepticons-"

"Not offlined, completely _destroyed _decepticons! I cut Megatron _in half_! I _watched _his spark go out!" She swept her hand back in a move that actually made him jump. Instead of striking him or herself, she slammed the flat side of her claws against a thick tree, snapping them off, "I _became _Megatron!"

The mech was silent, staring at her. The determination in his optics had faded. Now they just looked empty.

"I," she continued, voice dropping, "became the very thing Megatron dreamed of creating."

There was a dull ache in her wrist now. She felt lighter, vulnerable, without either set of claw blades. But she was glad in her spark that they were gone. "You...didn't see the way how his optics lit up with pride the moment before I tore my claws through his spark. He knew he couldn't get away, but he was _proud._"

Her voice broke somewhere through the last sentence.

"He knew what I'd become." She looked down at her hands, clenching them into fists.

Jolt moved. She couldn't hear him, but she could sense him. Part of her wanted to move back, the part that still didn't believe she had full control. But he reached through their bond and whispered to her quietly.

His hands pressed against her face, forcing her to look at him. He was quiet for a moment, simply studying her. Then he leaned his forehead against her's, "I know what you are, Demona. You are the light of my spark, my star. You are my peace, my hope. The mother of our sparklings. Without you, there is no light. There is no one else I love or trust more."

"You shouldn't trust me," She whispered, shuttering her optics.

"I do," he pushed lightly, "with my entire spark."

"I can't hurt you."

"You won't."

"Why do you still have faith?"

Her dropped his hands to her arms and coaxed her closer until she was leaning against him, "Megatron may have been you creator, but he means nothing else. You choose who you are, Demona. I fell in love with you, not him."

She felt his spark warm when she wrapped her arms around him, holding on like he was the last solid thing in her life.

* * *

><p>Rex was sneaking.<p>

He had become an absolute friggin' _king _at sneaking since he hooked up with Shark. The damn woman had eyes in the back of her head. He'd had to perfect his sneak skills real quick so he didn't get in trouble more than usual.

He made it out of the infirmary without waking anyone. By the time he was strolling down the hall, there was a big dumb grin on his face.

He and his boys had been scheming up a prank of epic proportions, one that would outdo tying a hula skirt and coconut bra to Ironhide while he was passed out over one of his weapons.

He couldn't wait.

"Hey, you're Rex, right?"

Rex jumped about a foot in the air and spun around, "What the hell, man! You get happy off of sneakin' up on guys?"

"Don't be talkin' to me like that, last I heard you were sentenced to bed rest by that crazy ass girlfriend!"

On impulse, Rex puffed up. "Hey! Don't be draggin' my girl into-wait a second. Hey, you're that Leo guy! The kitten calendar dude!"

He squared up too, "You got a problem with kittens?"

"No, but I got a problem with creepy kids like you stalking me!"

"I heard you were pulling a prank," He started, "I want in."

"It's gonna be dangerous," Rex said, "life-threatening even. You know who the target is? Can you be a brave soldier and handle something like this?"

"Dude, I was kidnapped and held captive by satan's attack dorito for a week. I'm sure I can handle it."

"You're in."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you enjoyed. Much love. <strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	73. Chapter 73

**Chapter 73**

"You're late," Was the first words to greet Jolt and Demona when they walked into the med bay.

Ratchet cast them a look, "I thought I said first thing in the morning."

"I'm sorry, Ratchet," Demona said softly, "I didn't recharge well last night."

His gaze softened slightly. He waved an arm in the direction of an open berth, "Sit down, youngling. You're overdue for an exam."

She parted from Jolt and made her way over, hopping up on the berth. She clenched her hands into fists, still adjusting to the loss of her most effective weapons. Although she felt vulnerable without them, her spark held some kind of peace. If she lost control again, maybe she wouldn't cause as much damage.

Unfortunately, the damage to her wrists from snapping them off was the first thing Ratchet noticed. He raised an optic ridge at her, "How did you manage to loose all ten blades within a few days?"

Demona flexed her fingers, the bands of armor on her arms spinning. They were slow though, almost unresponsive. Seeing no point in lying, she said simply, "I removed them."

"Why."

"It would be harder to hurt someone," She answered quietly.

He vented sharply then told her to lay back so he could look at her spark. She did so, optics dimming when Jolt started to speak to her through the bond. He was posted by the door, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

She opened her chest plates for the older medic. Quiet filled the room as he leaned over her and worked.

_'Where is Sundance?' _Demona was asking Jolt.

_'Bugging Ironhide.'_

She gave a small smile. _'Ironhide loves her.'_

_'He'll never admit it,' _Jolt agreed, _'did you want to pick her up once we're done here?'_

_'Yes-'_

"Jolt," Ratchet called, snapping them back to reality. The younger straightened up, at full attention. "I had Ironhide make me a new set of tools. I may need them to repair her wrists."

Jolt nodded and left the room.

Ratchet took a step back, "We need to talk, youngling."

Demona tensed, taking in the almost tired tone his voice had taken. She'd only heard it once or twice before in the six years she'd known him, and neither time had been good news. She closed her chest plates and sat up, "About?"

"How have you been feeling?"

"Exhausted," she answered.

"Your spark?"

She fought the urge to shoot him a look, "It's cracked, Ratchet. It hurts like the pit."

"I'd be shocked if it didn't," He turned to lean against the berth beside the one she was seated on. His optics fixed on her, "It was loosing Jolt that shattered your spark."

It was a statement, not a question, so she said nothing.

"And you're still blaming yourself for what happened."

_Primus. _Demona vented softly, "I lost control-"

"You were mad with grief," Ratchet said sharply, "you couldn't help it. You think you're the first bot to go insane after losing your mate?"

"Am I the first one to openly attack my own comrades?" She argued.

"_Enough. _All that matters is that you regained control of your frame and stopped before you caused serious damage. You've done nothing wrong, so no more of that trash."

Again, she vented. Demona slid down off the berth to stand on her own feet.

He studied her for a moment, "I've known you since the moment you turned against Megatron for the first time. Six human years...a short span in our time. I have picked up the parts of your crushed body and put you back together piece by piece...I've fought alongside you in battle. You've become an unexpected ally, one that I trust with my entire spark. I've watched you grow and change. You're still so young...and you have suffered through more in this war than I have. You're spark was strong. It seemed as though nothing could crush your spirit."

She listened, raising her optics to his. It was the first time the old medic had said anything like this to her, and it was making her aching spark uneasy. When he finished, one word struck out to her like a blazing fire in the night.

"'Was'?" She repeated slowly.

Ratchet raised a hand to press over his optics, like some heavy burden had been laid on his shoulders. Demona tensed.

She knew that her spark was weak. Frag, she was reminded every moment just how fragile it was. The pain never let up, flaring whenever she felt her sparkling move or when someone with a bond pulled a little too hard to get her attention. But to hear it spoken, out loud, by the autobot CMO, was frightening.

"Ratchet," she took a step towards him.

"Your sparkling stopped growing while you were unconscious in my med bay," he lowered his hand and looked her in the optic, "but now...now that you've returned to normal, he's begun to grow again, rapidly."

"I don't understand whats wrong-"

"The pain in your spark is him, Demona. The sparkling is leaning on you for more strength because he's 'catching up'. He's taking energy that you just don't have...and your spark is struggling to provide it for him."

_What..._She watched his expressions carefully, "You're saying that..."

"Your spark is cracking further beneath the strain of it...judging from the size of his spark and the damage to yours...you may not make it."

Although she had a pretty good idea of what he was getting at, the words slipped out, "What do you mean?"

"There's an eighty percent chance that you'll offline before the sparkling is ready for his first frame."

* * *

><p><strong>Things get worse before the get better. Lots and lots of drama and negative emotions...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	74. Chapter 74

**Chapter 74**

_...What?_

All Demona could do was stare at the mech.

He vented softly, "You have two choices. You can continue to carry him and I will do my best to keep both of you online, or you can have the sparkling aborted and live."

She leaned against the berth, lowering her optics as the gravity of the words slammed into her like a punch from Devastator. Slowly, her processor wrapped around the new information. Her spark squeezed tightly, sending a shock of burning pain through her.

"This is why you sent Jolt away," she said quietly, "so he wouldn't hear."

"Yes." He studied her, "the mech would have glitched on the spot."

"If I keep him...will he survive?"

"If his spark matures enough before you offline, then yes." He hesitated, "I've seen many femmes give up their sparklings after losing their mechs...If you choose-"

"I made my choice when I agreed to have the sparkling," she raised her optics to him, straightening. Her voice strengthened, "I am not one of those femmes."

His optics looked sad, but relieved at the same time. He crossed his arms over his chest, "How are you going to tell Jolt and Optimus?"

"I don't know."

They both looked at the doors when they slid open. Jolt walked in with a big container full of new, shiny tools. He set them down almost carefully on one of the berths, "I have a feeling that Rex and the twins are about to play one of their infamous pranks."

Demona grabbed the distraction like a lifeline, "What makes you say that?"

"I saw them huddled up in a corner whispering about some 'epic prank'."

"If they so much as step towards this med bay..." Ratchet growled, turning to the new tools. He picked through them until he found what he wanted then walked back to Demona whom had settled against her berth again.

"I didn't catch who their new victim is, but whatever the prank is, it sounds bad."

"Anything those three come up with is bad," Demona agreed.

Jolt took his place by the doorway again, making himself comfortable leaning up against the wall.

Demona could sense that he was tired, so she reached through their bond and wrapped him up in soft warmth, coaxing him into a very light recharge. The rest of her time in the med bay was spent in silence.

* * *

><p><em>Who do I tell first? How do I tell them?<em>

Demona was sitting up on the berth in their quarters, dimmed red optics turned down towards Jolt who was, once again, lost in recharge. Part of her envied him-she was so slagging tired but her restless processor and aching spark refused to let her rest.

Sundance was curled up in her hands. The sparkling hadn't left her side since Demona and Jolt had retrieved her from Ironhide's work room. She, too, was lost in her dreams.

Slowly, Demona lowered her.

She still needed to visit the wash racks to clean up-the scent of old energon was annoying the slag out of her. The only reason why she hadn't done it before was because she hadn't been able to get away from Sundance or Jolt.

She was hoping to slip away unnoticed like she had last night, but this time the mech onlined the moment he felt her shift. His beautiful blue optics blinked up at her tiredly.

Demona brushed her fingers over the armor on his arm, _'I'm just going to the wash racks, and I'll be back.'_

He tugged at her spark gently in response. She tucked Sundance in beneath his throat cables, watching as the red dragon smiled in her sleep and shifted closer to him. She stood up and stepped outside, just as Prime was walking past.

He froze when he saw her. She kept her back straight but let her optics soften a little. She greeted, "Good morning, Prime."

He relaxed, turning completely to face her. "Demona...I've been looking for you. Are you going to the wash racks?"

"Yes."

"I'll walk with you." He turned and waited for her to start walking before he joined her. They walked in complete silence for a while. It wasn't until they were half way there that the mech actually said something, "I'm glad that you're home."

...Which was not what she was expecting. She nodded, "I'm glad to be home."

"Ratchet told me about the sparkling."

Her spark froze. It took every ounce of her will to keep walking. She expected the worse, but all he said was, "How is he?"

_He doesn't know yet. _She was relieved and disappointed at the same time. Relieved because she couldn't stand the idea of putting such a weight on his shoulders. Disappointed because she would have to tell him herself later, which was something she was dreading.

"Growing. Ratchet said he looked healthy."

They rounded a corner and the doors to the wash racks came into view. Prime stopped in the middle of the hallway and turned his optics down to her, "Demona, I-"

They both tensed up when an enraged scream echoed through Base, nearly shaking the walls with it's volume. Demona winced, "Who the slag..."

Prime's face turned grim, "Sunstreaker."

Sure enough, after the shout, the roar of a powerful engine filled the air. She could feel the mech spinning his wheels through the floor. Confusion filled her. She turned to gaze down the hallway, "What the pit could have made him so mad?"

Above the bellow of a revving engine, she could hear the hysterical, squealing laughter of a certain set of twins and the horrified screams of a human. She rolled her optics and turned back to Prime, "Rex."

Prime sighed, "They may have finally met their match."

"I'll go after them-" She cut herself off when her sparkling shifted. White hot pain blazed through her, so intense she almost went into a stasis lock. Weakness filled her as soon as it passed, but she managed to stay standing.

Prime's expression turned from serious to concerned. She raised a hand to stop him before he could start with the questions, "Just tired."

"Get to the wash racks and return to your quarters," He said, "you need to recharge."

"Yes, Prime." They parted ways. She listened to Sunstreaker's unleashed wrath, and shook her head. _Primus._

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm...wonder what those four came up with to piss Sunstreaker off to the point of yelling...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	75. Chapter 75

**Chapter 75**

"What the _hell..._" Gears muttered, getting up.

The scream was so loud it actually _echoed_. She could feel it with her _feet _through the floor. She straightened up, casting her pale green eyes towards the entrance to the infirmary.

She started forward to stick her head out the window to see just what the hell was going on, but froze in place when she noticed a certain bed empty. She sighed, "Dammit, Rex."

The roar of a powerful engine shook the walls. She made her way towards the doorway in time to see red and green shapes rocket past. The twins were howling with fear and laughter at the same time, and they were _hauling ass._

"Who did they get this time?" Jo asked, leaving Pockets to stand beside her, "Ironhide?"

"No, too small."

"Doesn't sound small-" Jo cut herself off when a streak of white blasted past with enough force to send Gears stumbling back a step, "That DAMN sure isn't Ironhide!"

"Paradox?" Critter suggested.

"I don't think she'd make that much noise."

"What the fuck is that racket?" Shark snapped, waking from her nap. She had a wild-eyed look on her face, and if it was possible, Gears was sure there would have been smoke coming out of her nose and ears.

"Guess," Jo answered tonelessly. She looked at Gears when she stepped into the hall, "I don't think it's safe-"

"Well if I want that crazy ass moron to live, I'll have to do something. I have a feeling that Rex may have pushed his limits on this one." With that said, Gears went on her way.

* * *

><p>Paradox narrowed her scarlet optics when the angry roar of a powerful engine shook the walls of the hangar. With it her sharp audio receptors could pick out smaller, panicked engines squealing like little piglets caught in the claws of a predator. She could almost <em>smell <em>the chaos that was about to ensue.

She crossed her arms over her chest when the smaller, uglier set of twins came barreling around the corner so fast they nearly wrecked. She was the only one in the hangar, so their little hidden optics automatically fell on her. _Primus._

Both swung around wide and peeled towards her, slamming on the brakes once they were past her and squealing to a stop right behind her. She heard the sound of rapid transformation. Hands gripped her legs like they were trying to hold her there.

Sunstreaker came screaming into the hangar. Paradox tensed, feeling the power of his rage through the very earth. She broadened her stance a little when he didn't slow down. Sunstreaker was charging right towards her.

At the last possible moment, she turned and stepped over the twins, who started shouting and cursing up a storm in reaction. Paradox watched as the taller mech glided through his transformation in a liquid-smooth motion. She blinked when she realized that the mech wasn't quite the same bright yellow he'd been before. In fact he didn't even look like he had armor anymore. Every plate of yellow on Sunstreaker's body was covered in what looked like thick white fur.

"He's gonna kill us!" Someone shouted, "OH MY GOD!"

"SHEET!"

He swung towards them, but the two mechs and the pair of humans that had been riding inside of them rolled away. The one known as Rex let out a pained growl when he landed on his ribs.

"**SUNSTREAKER**!"

Paradox stepped back as Prime stormed into the hangar, blue optics hard. He strolled forward, the aura of authority rolling off him in waves. Sunstreaker sliced through the air with a blade, cutting dangerously close to Mudflap's face. The mech's eyes grew round.

Prime broke out into a run when orders didn't work. Sensing him, Sunstreaker turned on one foot to face him like an oncoming threat only to have all thirty-two foot tall of the great autobot leader slam to a stop and stare with wide optics.

Paradox paused, shifting her gaze back to the front-liner who was standing straight-backed, sides heaving with rushed, angry breaths. Down near her feet, a human fell over laughing hysterically.

"What..." Prime started.

"Are those..." Someone else started. Again, Paradox looked elsewhere. Standing in the massive doorway, the tiny, disfigured form of Gears, a human she knew Demona cared about dearly, stood with an open mouth and disbelieving eyes. Slowly, Gears raised a finger to point at the young mech, voice on the verge of being hysterical, "..._condoms_?"

* * *

><p><strong>Condom-pelt? Pretty much. <strong>

**New artwork...go check it out if you want.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	76. Chapter 76

**Chapter 76**

Demona scrubbed at the energon staining her rose red armor hard enough to scratch her paint. It felt like she was washing away thick layers of stink and death. The stress in her spark was easing too, because she was purposely scrubbing as hard as she could and burning energy while doing it. Ratchet's discovery was fresh in her mind. She had yet to figure out just who she was going to tell first...Jolt was still recovering from the past couple of weeks and was fragile. To mention something like this...it would just tear open new wounds and send him into a panic.

Prime was still shaken, too. Gears..._Primus. _The woman had nearly lost her entire family in a matter of days. No telling how she would react. _And then there's Paradox..._

She dropped it there, because her spark was beginning to ache again. She focused on scrubbing, forcing herself to think on different things.

In her processor, memories of the last few weeks played over and over. Megatron's claim, Critter's terrified shouts...

_Alex. _

She stilled, shuttering her optics.

_He stood up. _The image burned in her processor. Not once in his life had he ever stood up, his legs were simply too thin, too weak. Standing, nevermind walking, was a dream that the boy would never reach.

But he had _stood up. _And for _her_ of all things.

She opened her optics and turned when the sound of the door sliding open reached her above the running water.

Sideswipe stepped in first with a hysterical expression on his face. He looked towards the doorway and shook with silent laughter. Snarling, Sunstreaker stormed inside behind him. Demona blinked. _What the frag..._

"You gotta admit that they got you _good, _Sunny," Sideswipe was saying, "this is...brilliant."

Sunstreaker smacked his hand away when he tugged on a handful of what looked like shaggy white hair. A closer look and she realized that it was not hair but rather...layers and layers of 'condoms'. _Primus. _Demona knew what condoms were-she'd heard one too many awkward conversations between her brother and Rex before he knew what she really was. She'd heard quite enough about them.

Both mechs froze when she reached forward and shut the water off.

She still felt like she was caked in dirt and energon, but she'd already been in there for well over an hour. Any longer and Jolt might come searching for her. She ignored their stares, keeping her optics low as she started towards the door.

"Demona."

She stopped and faced Sideswipe. For once his optics were sincere. He said, "Welcome back."

A small smile pulled at her lip plates. She inclined her head and left them behind.

* * *

><p>"Is it safe to leave him in there by himself?" Critter asked, looking up at his mother when she ran out of the infirmary real fast and slammed the door shut behind her with one hand. The other was being used to plug her sensitive ear. She could still hear out of the other, but it sucked because it was the one that was facing Skywarp's body when he went up in flames.<p>

Inside, Rex was being subjected to Shark's wrath.

"I don't know what's worse," Gears started, "Abominable condom-man Sunstreaker wrecking havoc on base or the way Shark's eyes change when she gets pissed."

"Do you think he'll come out in one piece?"

"I doubt it," she walked over to him and leaned against the wall beside his wheel chair, "Pockets is in there, though...so is Jo."

He gave her a horrified look, "Crap, mom, if Jo gets mad at her for waking up Pockets-"

"Shark's been on her own since she was a kid, so she's tough. Jo's small, but shes no light weight. I've seen that girl flip over a couple of teenagers for throwing rocks at her horses...she gets pretty scary herself when she's mad."

"I'm not burying anyone."

"Don't worry...there's only one thing that could possibly calm those two."

He blinked, then finished, "Rex and Pockets."

She nodded. Her eyes flew up when the familiar sound of big metal feet on the floor echoed around them. Critter followed her gaze and felt his eyes widen.

"'Quiet' is a foreign word here," Demona said softly. The armor around her wrists were spinning slowly, but he knew in his heart that she wouldn't dare hurt them. This Demona was _their _Demona. He could see it in her soft eyes.

"So you heard, too?" Gears started, straightening. Demona stepped closer, kneeling so she could see them better.

"I think everyone in a five mile radius did," His big sister answered, "I think that Rex and the twins have finally met their match."

"No telling what Sunstreaker and Sideswipe will come up with..." Gears trailed off then stretched a hand up to touch Demona's knee, "why haven't you come to see us, Dem? I've been worried sick about you...but I didn't want to interrupt your time with Jolt and Sundance."

She rolled her optics, "I've been grounded to our quarters by Jolt, Ratchet _and _Prime. The only exception is going to the med bay or wash racks..." Demona's gaze softened and shifted to Critter when he rolled forward.

He just _stared_ at her. Critter hadn't seen his sister, his _real_ sister, in weeks. He thought things were bad before, when she'd left to help Optimus find other autobots that had crash landed on earth, but it was nothing compared to the hours spent staring at her broken body and wondering if she'd ever be the same. He'd thought of a million things to say. A thousand different apologies.

But now he was blank. All he could do was stare.

"Why didn't you run from me, Alex?" She said quietly, "I might have hurt you."

Then, all at once, it came out. He leaned forward in his chair, looking down as he pushed a hand through his hair, "I'm sorry, Demona. I'm sorry-everything just...I can't even...I...I thought I lost you. You were just gone. I didn't know what to do..."

"You stood up."

Gears had a surprised expression on her face, looking back and forth between them. Critter raised his green eyes back to Demona, quiet again.

"I heard you," She continued, "every word. There is nothing to apologize for...I was the one that turned on you."

He shook his head, "No, you _stopped. _I knew you wouldn't hurt me. And you didn't."

"I don't know how you had so much faith in me..."

"Because you have always had faith in me," He whispered, "you have never broken a promise to me."

She lowered a hand. He reached out and touched his fingers to her knuckles.

"Thank you, brother."

He smiled at her.

* * *

><p><strong>Ugh...<strong>

**Had my first encounter with a troll on DA. Little bastards...You know, it doesn't really bother me but there are some kids on there that worked real hard on something and they're proud of it. And then some jackass comes along and pulls the "put in the 'shit no one wants to see' folder". A lot of those same artists deleted their work just because of it. Fucking bastards...It makes me want to set insane-evil-psycho-Demona on their asses...**

**Anyway, enough with my complaining. Not a very good chapter, but I'm running on fumes over here and I got some hours of house work ahead of me...**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	77. Chapter 77

**Chapter 77**

"Optimus is calling a meeting to discuss Shockwave's appearance," Jolt stated, electric blue optics focused on Demona. She was kneeling in front of the tools, reorganizing them with a recharging sparkling wrapped around her shoulders almost protectively. He'd noticed that since the femme had returned, Sundance absolutely refused to let her out of sight.

"Shockwave was supposed to have been defeated by the Dinobots," Demona explained softly. She turned soft red optics to him, "Prime is worried. Apparently, this Shockwave is a real nightmare."

"He is," Jolt confirmed. He leaned forward, seated on their berth. Gently, he pulled on her spark, trying to coax her into coming back so she could get some more recharge. He didn't need Ratchet or any medical training to tell him that she was, as humans say, 'running on fumes'. He could feel it in her damaged spark. Outside, he kept speaking, "I've had the fortunate experience of facing him before..."

"And?"

"He kicked my aft," he answered, "long story short."

"When I looked at his face," she turned back to his tools, "...he and the mech designated Soundwave are the only decepticons that have ever made my spark run cold like that."

Dread filled him. He felt his inner most frame freeze. "You met Soundwave?"

"He was in Megatron's camp, the one that was guarding me to make sure I didn't try anything."

Jolt vented sharply, bowing his head and pressing a hand to his helm, "_Primus. _How do you get yourself into these situations, Demona?"

"I blame my creators," Demona answered, tone strained.

He raised his gaze up to her, spark tensing at the sound. He watched her more carefully now.

She pushed one container in and pulled another out, setting things that belonged inside. She returned to the original topic, "Are you going?"

"Yes."

"I'm going with you."

_Primus. _He narrowed his optics, bracing himself for another one of those 'talks'. He lowered both arms, resting his elbows on his knees. Automatically, the word came out, "No."

She stopped again to give him a look over her shoulder, "Seriously, Jolt?"

"Primus, _no._" He was shaking his head now, "please don't start this."

"I'm fine, mech."

"No," focusing on her again, he pulled at her spark enough to feel her almost recoil in reaction to remind her how fragile she was, "you're not. You're exhausted, you haven't recharged for longer then four hours since you returned to base."

She stood up, "I can't."

"And just why can't you? Any other bot would take time to recover, but you won't even try to rest."

She hesitated, something strange filling her optics. Something between worry and sadness. She seemed to pick her words slowly, "I can't because my spark hurts. How am I supposed to fall into recharge when there's this constant ache inside me?"

"How are you supposed to heal when you won't rest?" He argued lightly.

Demona pushed the last container back into place with her toe-claws before turning and walking towards him. He watched her approach, spark warming with every step. They'd been bonded for a little over four years now, and she still made him feel the same way she had the first day he'd met her.

She stopped directly in front of him and raised a hand to trace the angles of his armor, "Jolt...why are you so concerned now? Our sparkling is healthy. I'm home...and sane."

He gripped her wrists, "And injured. I've seen the tears in your spark-it's a miracle in itself how you survived. Any other femme, especially with a growing sparkling, would have caved beneath it all. We can't fix this like other injuries-I don't even know if you will recover." His voice tensed near the end of his speech.

She leaned down, resting her forehead against his, "I'm not going anywhere."

"I can feel you growing weaker."

He opened his optics in time to see her go rigid. He gentled his hold on her arms and shift his hands to her hips, pulling her closer, "You can't hide it from me, Demona. I know...the smallest pull on your spark is so painful...but you never let it reach the surface. You keep it inside, like you always have."

"Jolt..."

"Just please...stay here and try to recharge."

She stared at him for a moment. He could almost see the struggle in her optics, and was afraid for a moment that she was going to say no. The longer they stared at each other, the more he began to notice that there was something heavy weighing on her, and it wasn't the pain in her spark or her apparent need for arguing. He was about to ask what was wrong when she finally gave in, "I'll stay and watch Sundance."

"And recharge," He added.

She rolled her optics playfully, "Yes, mech."

He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her, "Thank you."

* * *

><p>"You think <em>I <em>led Shockwave here?" Paradox snapped, hidden scarlet optics flashing, "Not taking into account that I have allied myself with your peace loving afts, and protected some of you in battle. Why the _slag _would I want to have anything to do with Shockwave of all mechs?"

The scout turned his nose up to her, "Well, you _are_ a con."

"_Enough_," Prime said, raising his voice just enough to get over the noise. He vented softly, turning to Paradox himself, "I'm not blaming you for what has happened, but you _are_ among the decepticon ranks. Do you have any idea of how he survived or why he chose to show himself after Megatron's fall?"

"Do you have any idea of how the dinobots failed to destroy him or why they haven't told you about their failure yet?" She shot back. He tensed slightly.

Paradox crossed her arms, "For those of you who don't know Shockwave, he was a scientist before he became a warrior. He doesn't just charge in-this mech _strategizes. _He plans out _everything. _Aside from being one of the last triple changers and being impossibly strong by himself, Shockwave never runs out of tricks. Every little movement, every attack, is carefully mapped out. I would rather battle Megatron all over again than face him in a life or death match." An odd silence filled the room, and she paused long enough to sweep her optics over them all.

Her gaze landed on Prime, "I have no idea how your dinobots failed to destroy him. I've never had the pleasure of crossing them, but I've heard plenty of horror stories about Grimlock's wrath and the size of his lethal jaws. But if there was one that could stump them, it would be Shockwave. I imagine he realized he was outmatched against Grimlock's warriors, and feigned his own offlining in order to get away undamaged. As for making his appearance now and not while Megatron's still online...several decepticons were loyal to Megatron, and several were not. Starscream wasn't the only one plotting to take over the throne."

"How many do you think survived?" Ghost asked, emerging from the far corner of the room. Paradox tensed, optics narrowing. The part of her that was Angelus wanted to reach for her, but at the same time was enraged.

"Demona managed to kill most of the ones that we knew were stationed on earth," she answered, "but we had no record of Shockwave's survival, or Soundwave. No telling how many others are stashed away on this planet."

"Why haven't they come out to fight yet?" A second scout asked.

"Decepticons were born in the deepest pit of Cybertron, where they remained hidden until their numbers were great. They are masters at hiding and waiting." She faced him next, "they all know that Megatron is gone. Now they're waiting for a new leader to take over, someone to follow."

Most of them turned when the doors slid open. Jolt stepped inside. Before he could get a word in, Ratchet started, "Where's Demona?"

"Resting."

"And how is she?"

Jolt shook his head, "No change. She's not recovering."

The older medic raised a hand to rest on his shoulder. Jolt looked about as worn down as his bonded.

Paradox watched the expression on Ratchet's face carefully, blocking out the sound of Prime's baritone voice when he put in his opinion on things. She'd known the mech longer than most of the autobots here, and she could easily detect the cautious edge in his voice, the kind he got when he was telling a mech when someone close to him was offlining. The kind of tone used when there was no hope.

She hadn't heard it since she was fresh in her third frame on Cybertron, and she was worried.

"What do you want us to do?" Ghost asked, turning her full attention to Prime.

"We don't have a choice but to wait," he answered, "we have no way of tracking Shockwave or Driller."

"So we just wait until they start blowing up another city," Sideswipe said, "that sounds like...fun."

"You're putting humans at risk," Paradox warned, "are you prepared for that? Several perished in the last battle, their 'government' won't be very happy."

Prime vented again, raising a hand to press to his helm, "Yes, Paradox, I understand...this is the last thing I want to do."

"What if we send out scouts?" Ghost suggested, "if he emerges half across the country, there's no possible way we'll be there in time to stop him from destroying the entire city."

"Yes, because that was such a great idea before," Paradox snapped. Ghost's ice-like optics flew to her, narrowing.

"Everyone made it out online," Ghost growled, "even Megatron's spawn."

Paradox's spark flared to life with rage. She almost shot forward to tear her down. Ghost sent her the hardest look she could possibly give, and added with a cold voice, "She's a killer, _friend._ No amount of talk or faith will save her from what she really is."

"She is not Megatron," Paradox whispered, "she's different."

"Then what is she like?" Ghost pushed, "her mother? Because she's just such a _perfect_ role model."

"If you knew who her femme creator was," Paradox raised a hand to stop Prime when he started forward with narrowed optics, "you wouldn't say such things."

"I know who she is."

"No, you don't."

Paradox stepped back. She felt Ratchet's gaze on her but chose to ignore him. She turned and left, ignoring the sharp words Ratchet was laying on the femme.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry, late update...disappeared for a week. sorry. <strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	78. Chapter 78

**Chapter 78**

"So I'm going to have a brother?"

Sundance was whispering, her voice full of awe. She was stretched out across Demona's chest, tilting her head and staring down into Demona's soft red optics.

"Yes."

A big smile filled the sparkling's face. She shifted her wings lightly, "When?"

Demona didn't answer right away. She was staring up at the ceiling, processor numb. She had laid down after Jolt left in an attempt to recharge, but she just couldn't. It seemed like the last she'd felt so torn was a life time away...back when she was first separating from Megatron. She shuttered her optics when Sundance climbed up closer, touching noses with her. Sundance had an almost dreamy look on her face, "When will I see him, momma?"

"Soon," Demona said softly.

Which wasn't far from the truth. It'd been a month since conceiving the sparkling and, as Ratchet pointed out, he was growing rapidly. Soon he would be too big to carry inside and they'd have to move him to his first frame.

_If we survive, that is..._

Demona shoved the thought away, forcing herself to focus on better things. Her expression softened, and she started, "We haven't chosen a designation for him yet-"

Like she planned, the little dragon perked up even more and asked, "Can I pick one?"

"Maybe," Demona smiled when the sparkling started bouncing very lightly in her excitement, "if your father says it's okay."

"I bet he will. I've already got some ideas."

"Like?"

Sundance settled, "Well..."

* * *

><p>"What's going on?" Gears asked, walking up to Optimus.<p>

The big guy turned his amazing blue optics to her. She watched the expressions on his face and answered her own question, "It's that Shockwave bastard, isn't it?"

"The decepticons are restless," Optimus confirmed, "Shockwave escaped. No telling how many more are hiding here on earth."

"There can't be too many," Gears gave him a look, "Demona killed off a big chunk of them, not counting the millions that you've already taken care of before you came here-how many more is there?"

"I don't know." His tone was almost painfully honest.

She stared at him, seeing the exhaustion in his gaze. Rex joined them, hand raised to press against his side. He squinted up at Optimus, "When is this shit supposed to end? This war has been going on for fucking centuries. Megatron has died _twice_. People are dying, everyones getting hurt-"

"It's called war," a femme started, turning frozen blue optics to them. Gears looked towards her and tensed.

Optimus narrowed his optics and also looked to her, "Ghost-"

"And it will never end," She continued, completely ignoring the warning in his voice, "more than you can possibly imagine have perished since the beginning, and more will follow. The darkness fell on your planet. You will never see the light of peace again."

"Boy you're a cheerful little bot, aren't you?" Gears commented.

Rex glared at her. She stepped past them, "If we are constantly fighting for peace...when we finally have it, we'll be constantly fighting to keep it. There's no point. Someday this world will be as empty as Cybertron."

They watched the black autobot leave the hangar. Gears pointed at her and turned to Optimus, "Um, what was that?"

"Ghost," he vented tiredly, "she was once very kind...one of our most honorable soldiers."

Rex gave him a crazy look, "_That _was honorable?"

"Wait..." Gears turned back to look at the hangar exit, "wasn't she the one that shot Demona in the spark?"

"Yes."

She turned on one heel and started to march towards the door with a purpose, coming up with a big, long list of all kinds of torture she could inflict on a cybertronian, when a massive hand stopped her. When gears turned back to unload on Optimus instead, there was an amused light in his optics, like he would very much enjoy seeing her wrath let loose on the femme.

He shook his head though, "I said once. She's far from the femme I called friend years ago on Cybertron. The war has made her cold and distant...unpredictable."

The amusement gave way to seriousness, "I'm not sure if it's wise for you to...'converse' with her."

* * *

><p>Ratchet nearly jumped out of his armor when Paradox's voice echoed in his otherwise empty med bay, "I may not be the same femme you took on as your apprentice before the war, but I still remember it all."<p>

"Angelus," he vented softly, turning to her. His optics softened marginally, "why are you here?"

"What's wrong with her?"

His shoulders became rigid, spine tense. He looked at her more carefully now.

The visor was raised, showing fierce, scarlet optics that were far more vivid and deep than Megatron's. Frozen like the optics of a bot who had suffered through great tragedy, but blazing with a tightly leashed wrath. Once, he realized, long, _long _ago, those optics had been blue.

"As long as she rests," He tried, "Demona will stay in good health."

He clenched his dentals as he spoke. As a medic, he was required to share any crucial information to the family or close friends of an injured bot. As a mech, he despised lying to a comrade's face-especially one he had known far longer than even Optimus.

But Paradox wasn't fooled. Her expression shifted from calm to anger, gaze burning holes through him. She crossed her arms and leaned against one of the berths, "You've never been one to make up stories, Doc."

He tensed up further. _Doc. _

Everyone else had come to calling him _the Hatchet _or _Ratch_. Only Angelus called him Doc, the very first nickname he'd ever been given.

So, in turn, he used her's, "I've never had a reason to, Angel."

Her optics narrowed, as if it was an insult.

He vented softly and turned away, going through his tools to make sure those wretched twins hadn't taken off with any in one of their ridiculous pranks. His voice was strained when he spoke, "Demona requested that I let her inform all of you...so go to her for answers."

"She's recharging, remember? I came to you."

_Primus. _Ratchet shuttered his optics, "And you can't wait until she comes to you?"

"If her life is at risk," She said, "I want to know."

Something clicked in his processor.

Her voice had changed, no longer smooth and emotionless. It was soft instead, and concerned. _Red, _a thought whispered, _Angelus' armor was red. _Slowly, he raised his gaze from his tools to the femme who had walked around to stand in front of him.

She must have seen the realization in his optics, because she raised an optic ridge, "I've had a busy life, haven't I?"

"_Primus._" His optics were wide, locked on her, "Angelus..._you?_ You're her..."

_All this time, Optimus and I have searched...she has been here. Right in front of us. But how could we have missed it? _

She put her hands on the berth and leaned towards him, all amusement leaving her face plates, "You tend to figure these things out before it's time to share. But you understand now, don't you? You understand why I need to know."

Stunned, all he could do was stare. His processor was working rapidly, spinning out thoughts and questions. _Does Demona know? Of course she does...that's why she trusts her so easily, why she defends her so fiercely. Optimus? No...he doesn't even know that Angelus survived, even though she's...different. Jolt? The mech is clueless... How could I have not seen it before!_

"Ratchet!"

He jumped slightly, yanked out of his thoughts. His optics focused on her again. _Demona is...the creation of Angelus...Demona said that her femme creator had been offlined seconds after her birth...Angelus was salvaged, rebuilt into..._

_...Paradox._

"Demona is offlining," Ratchet finally said. He sounded as exhausted as he felt. He actually took a step back and leaned on the berth behind him for support, "she's fading rapidly."

And the look on the femme's face was almost spark-shattering. Not so much as shocked or disbelieving, but empty. He could literally see the change in her optics as the words sunk in. He pushed on, "When you pointed out the sparkling? That it wasn't growing? It's doing so now, but much more quickly than it should be. It's stripping Demona of what little strength she has left to survive, and her spark is beginning to cave beneath the pressure."

"What's the number?"

"Angelus..."

"Slag, Ratchet, WHAT _is_ the _number_!" She snarled, clenching one of her hands into a fist.

"Eighty-five," He watched her carefully, "there's an eighty-five percent chance that she'll leave us before the sparkling requires his first frame. The number is going up because she is...growing weaker."

"Have you spoken to her about removing the sparkling?"

"Yes."

"And?"

Again, he vented, "She refuses to. She's going to hold on for as long as she can so the sparkling has a chance to survive. She's dead set on the idea of keeping her young."

She straightened then leaned back to mirror him, leaning against the berth behind her. A white hand lifted to press to her face, "Of course she is...it runs in the family."

"You..." He hesitated, not sure if he was treading on safe ground, "...your sparkling was Demona...and Megatron was the one that took her away. But that means..."

She fixed her optics on him, her gaze hardening, "When I left the autobot ranks to find my mate, Megatron found me. I fought him as hard as I possibly could, and he took note. In the end, I was powerless against him and he used my body to carry his creation. Demona."

"But why would you attack her?"

"I was rebuilt from the inside out, and that includes my processor. I was rewired to destroy. Pair that with the rage in my shattered spark, and you have an insane creature that lives solely for the hunt. I remembered nothing, I felt nothing. Until..."

"Until you fought her in the junkyard."

"Yes."

"There's nothing you can do, Angelus." His voice fell soft, optics saddening. She lowered her optics. He kept going, "You, Jolt, Sundance, Prime, me-we all have to let her go."

"You speak as if she is already offline."

"Statistics-"

"It's just a number," She whispered, "it holds no value."

"You should know better than to ignore it."

Abruptly, she snapped, straightening, "And you should know better than to tell a femme that she needs to 'let go' of her sparkling!"

He was silent this time. He'd seen thousands of things in his life, thousands of families and friends shattered with mourning. Thousands of lives saved. Thousands of lives lost. But he had never been able to fully understand the bond between mother and sparkling.

All at once, the fight drained out of her. She pushed away from the berth and started towards the door.

Before she walked out, she stopped and turned halfway to look at him. Her words rang clear in the med bay.

"I lost her once, Ratchet. I spent an entire life time in darkness without her...I have just found her again..." Her optics narrowed, "I will never let her go."

* * *

><p><strong>:'(<strong>

**Demona, her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	79. Chapter 79

**Chapter 79**

Demona's frame went rigid, curling slightly against Jolt's chest. A hand raised to clench at her spark, red optics dim. A shuddering breath left her when the sparkling shifted closer. Her systems stuttered with a whine-she could feel her spark flickering. _Weak. Very weak._

_Primus._

Snuggled between the two of them, Sundance stirred. Demona shifted away-it was suddenly too hot inside the room. She needed to get out. _Now. _She managed to push herself up but her arms were trembling. A soft blue light fell on her armor as Jolt onlined and lit his optics. He tensed, becoming aware of her pain in an instant. Demona didn't wait for his full reaction-she touched her toe claws to the floor.

The steel tile was alarmingly cold against her armor. She tried to stand but the sparkling moved again and she went crashing to the ground. Jolt was there in under a second, kneeling with his hands reaching for her. Through the bond, his spark was wide open, sending her strength and calm. Her spark seized it like a breath of fresh air after being held underwater, feeding it directly to her growing sparkling instead of saving it for herself.

Sundance was scrambling across the berth, red optics wide with fear. She stared down and begun to call for her, voice high with panic. "Momma! Mom, what's-Dad, what's wrong with her!"

He didn't answer her right away. Worried blue optics focused on Demona's chest plates, and he pushed her hand away so he could access them. He ran his fingertips over the seams until they opened, and cursed violently when he saw her pulsing spark. With a flick of his hand he closed them again and eased his arms beneath her. When he spoke, he glanced at Sundance, "I need you to go find Optimus. Tell him what's happening. Go, Sundance!"

The dragon took off, streaking past him and out the door. He turned his attention to Demona, "I told you to rest."

"I did," She forced out through clenched dentals. Demona raised a hand to wrap around a plate of his armor, hanging on like he was her lifeline. She shuttered her optics and leaned into him as he lifted her and left their quarters, rushing to the med bay.

Again, the sparkling moved, like he was trying to get closer to her spark. For a moment, all feeling left her body and she slackened. Her grip on him loosened. He kept sending her strength, a constant wave that never ended.

_Not yet...Primus, not yet..._

* * *

><p><em>Primus, no. <em>His spark nearly shattered in his chest when he felt her spark go out, if only for a second. The hand she'd been using to grasp a plate of his chest armor fell like dead alloys to her body. Her optics went dark. The trembling that was shaking her form stopped. He could still feel her after though, hanging on as tightly as she could.

Ratchet was barreling out of the med bay in a not so graceful manner to meet Jolt at the door. Immediately, the younger medic started to talk, "Her spark is tearing-I felt it in recharge and woke in time to see her fall. She just fell, Ratchet! She can't even stand!"

"Frag it all," Ratchet growled, "this isn't supposed to happen yet! It's too soon!"

Jolt's processor nearly stopped. He raised his optics to the older mech, catching the meaning in the phrase. _Yet? What..._but before he could ask, Ratchet was taking the femme out of his arms and making a sharp U-turn back into the med bay. He was barking orders, "Start up the support systems, I need Spark Support online _now!_ Clear that berth!"

Jolt swept an arm over the nearest berth, knocking all the spare parts and old tools that had been neatly organized on it to the floor. He turned to a hi-tech cybertronian machine, punching in a pass code and flipping the switch to get it started. The engine came to life with a sharp whine, several lights flashing on.

"Where's Optimus! He must have felt it," Ratchet snapped, "where the pit is that mech!"

"I sent Sundance to find him," Jolt offered, "he should be-"

Cutting them both off, the doors to the med bay slid open with a hiss. Without even looking at or greeting the mech, Ratchet reached an arm out, grabbed Prime's wrist, and yanked him inside. Optimus made his way to Demona automatically, pressing a hand to her forehead. Jolt and Ratchet both paused when she responded, expending enough energy to wrap her fingers around his wrist and whisper, "I'm sorry."

"Jolt-status on the machine," Ratchet came right back to Demona's side.

"Still warming up," Jolt answered, "Ratchet-"

"_Pit," _The medic snarled, "we don't have time for this!"

"Primus she's cold," Optimus said quietly, "why is she...What happened?"

Sundance appeared from his shoulders, leaning down carefully so she could see Demona easier. Her optics were full of pain and concern, "Momma just fell down..."

She jumped when the sound of heavy steel scraping on metal tile filled the room. Both mechs and the sparkling glanced at Ratchet, seeing him push one of the berths closer to Demona. Optimus straightened to help, but the femme wouldn't let him go. She held on, even though her optics were shuttered and face plates slack.

"No," Ratchet told him with a firm look, "You need to stay close to her. At this rate, she's too weak to reach out to you. It's crucial that you stay at her side. That means you, too, Jolt."

Jolt hesitated, optics fixed on his femme.

Every inch of him screamed to go to her, to help her, but the machine had to be calibrated before it could be useful. Ratchet was busy with moving things and making space. Demona wasn't about to let Prime go, and the mech wasn't about to pull away. He needed to help her, he could feel her struggling to stay online, but they'd need all support systems ready to go ASAP. Ratchet seemed to understand. His blue optics were lost between sharp concern and raw fear. When their gazes met, Jolt's frame went cold. The senior medic turned away.

Ratchet finished shoving the berth over and pointed a finger at Prime, "On the berth, now."

The thirty-two foot tall mech made no complaint. He sat down and leaned back. Moving around them in a rush, Ratchet was talking rapidly, "Demona needs to be in contact with both of you to make it through this...Jolt, get over here! Primus, where's that slagging femme when you need her!"

Jolt glanced back at the machine but left it. Ratchet instructed to move Optimus back and then proceeded to ease Demona on after him to make enough room for Jolt. The medic started cursing before looking at Optimus, "Please tell me you have Ange-" he vented sharply, "_-Paradox_ on your com link!"

Jolt settled behind Demona, slipping an arm around her out of habit. He shuttered his optics and rested his face against the soft spot between her neck and shoulder. By then, Demona had both hands wrapped around Optimus' arm.

"I do," Their superior was saying, "But why-"

"Send for her, believe it or not she knows her away around the med bay. She'll know how to work the support systems."

He nodded and raised his free hand to cover Demona's forehead. Ratchet scooped up Sundance from the berth she'd been perched on and settled her in the only empty space between the three-between Optimus and Demona. The dragon crawled closer to her femme creator and settled uneasily, "She was tired...but she was okay. What happened to her, Ratchet?"

The medic kept running around the med bay like a chicken with it's head cut off, gathering tools and muttering to himself. He didn't stop until the doors slid open to reveal Paradox.

The femme almost ghosted forward, posting herself at the end of the berths. The visor was lowered so he couldn't quite make out her expression, but Jolt opened his optics in time to see her lower a hand to Demona's horns. Like magic, the younger femme jumped slightly and slowly lit her optics.

Jolt tightened his hold on her, taking her moment of awareness to send more strength, just as he knew Optimus and Sundance were.

Paradox sent Ratchet a look, moving away from Demona when she slipped into unconsciousness, "I thought she had more time."

"So did I," he replied grimly. He raised a hand to point to the machine, "I'm hoping you remember how to work one of those."

Without a word she approached it and accessed the controls, punching in numbers and commands with one hand. Jolt blocked it all out, sinking deep into the strained bond and praying to Primus and any other higher power that she would survive.

* * *

><p><strong>I didn't have time to go through and clean it up some, so if there's mistakes...sorry. <strong>

**:/**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	80. Chapter 80

**Chapter 80**

Paradox turned away from the machine, fixing hidden red optics on the younger femme sandwiched between the mechs. Ratchet was still at it, keeping a close optic on Demona's spark himself. He was still muttering every now and then but for the most part he'd gone silent since all four of the bots on the berths were lost in recharge.

"How is she?" She asked, halfway afraid of the answer. Her insides clenched when she saw how faded the light of Demona's spark was. At least it wasn't pulsing anymore.

"As stable as she'll get," Ratchet answered a moment later. He hesitated for a minute, sending her a saddened look, "Angelus, I-"

"I had a chance," Paradox said softly, cutting him off, "I had a chance to have her removed from my body when she was a sparkling. The medic was an old friend-he was more than ready to help me. I was more than ready to be rid of her. She was Megatron's creation, his spawn...I was so sure that something evil was growing inside me. But..."

"But...?" He pushed gently.

"I couldn't let her go." Her optics scanned over the four autobots piled on the berths, each in contact with one another. Demona was still holding on to Prime, Jolt was still holding on to Demona. Sundance had shifted so that she was curled on top of her mother's side, tail dropped down and draped over Prime. Her head was propped up on Jolt's arm. Linked-a family.

She vented softly, "At the last possible slagging minute, I felt her move for the first time...it was like she was holding on to me, like she was afraid to let go. And I couldn't just tear her out. I knew that I was putting the entire future of the autobots at risk, but I didn't care."

"I'm glad that you didn't," he said after a while. His optics stayed fixed on her, like she was a puzzle he just couldn't quite figure out. He switched topics, "You say that you and Angelus are different beings, that Angelus is dead. How can that be when you have every memory and feeling that belonged to her? You change when you speak about her, it's like you're of two different natures."

"We share the same tattered spark, but have separate beings. Angelus is nothing more than a ghost that haunts the processor of Paradox. She is the past, I am the present."

"Then who am I speaking to now?" He asked, "is it Angelus the savior, or Paradox the destroyer? Because I can't tell anymore."

Paradox was silent, unable to give him an answer.

"You've changed. You're not the energon-hungry decepticon you were four years ago."

"I'm not your precious apprentice anymore, either," She growled warningly, "_nothing_ has changed."

He shook his head, "Primus, femme..."

Paradox's spark tightened in her chest in alarm. She straightened and turned her eyes back to Demona, dropping the argument there. Ratchet blinked at her then followed her gaze. His optics widened almost comically when her frame jolted lightly, like she was waking from a nightmare.

The older medic vented sharply, making his way over. He put his hands on her shoulders to hold her down when she tried to sit up. He advised, "Stay down, youngling. You don't have the strength."

Paradox stayed where she was. Her visor flipped back soundlessly, narrowed red optics fixed on the younger femme. Demona was barely online, barely aware. Her fingers tightened around Prime's armor and she pulled his arm closer like she was seeking comfort.

Demona let her head roll to the side as if she didn't have the energy to hold it in place. She spared a hand to grasp Prime's chest plates and shake him weakly, "Optimus..."

"Demona, what the pit-" Ratchet cut himself off when the femme turned to him next, seeing a dark fear in her gaze. She reached for him instead, fingers wrapping around his arm and trying to remove it, "...Ratchet, run."

Frame freezing in her body, Paradox made her way over. A storm of alarm and fear was taking over her spark, defense routines kicking on immediately. Every step was silent, every move smooth. Her blades suddenly felt heavy, safely tucked away in the armor around her wrists.

"...No more time..."

"What-" Again, the medic was cut off as the lights flickered and the alarms came online screaming. Ratchet nearly jumped out of his armor. Paradox lost her hold on her blades and they slid out, glinting sharply in the red lights. She snarled, "Decepticons."

* * *

><p><strong>I'm trying to figure out if I'm going to Post Angelus' story or Sundance's next...desicions, desicions...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	81. Chapter 81

**Chapter 81**

Prime onlined in an instant, blue optics blinking up wearily. He was up on his feet in a matter of seconds.

The entire base shuddered with a roar. Ratchet stumbled back, releasing Demona. The femme pushed herself up on shaking arms. Sundance rolled down and into her mech creator with a surprised yelp, waking him.

Paradox broadened her stance, managing to stay standing when the quaking increased.

"_FRAG_!" Ratchet snapped as dust began to rain down. Above the strained shrieking of the building, they could hear beams and concrete cracking.

Jolt was next to stand, although he posted himself beside Demona, encircling an arm around her protectively to keep her from falling. Sundance wedged herself between her creators and held on, turning her face into Demona's stomach.

Paradox felt an almost painful pull on her spark. In reaction, her optics flew up to the ceiling just as it shattered. Since he was closest to her, Prime stretched an arm out and pulled her out of the way as thick chunks of debris came crashing down. He was shouting, "_OUT_, NOW!" He tried to pull Paradox out, but she stood firm, refusing to leave her child, who was caught in the middle of the room where the destruction was worst.

Demona took a handful of her mate's armor and tried to push him towards the door, but the mech would not budge from her side. In one move, Jolt packed Sundance into Demona's arms and pushed Demona down, using his body to shield theirs.

Through the thick dust and rubble, a massive hand plunged down into the med bay. Fading sunlight reflected sharply off thick plates of purple and gray armor. Lethal claws that were as long as Paradox's body spread open.

Her optics widened, frame freezing in her body. Her energon ran cold with fear, her spark spun in her chest. Her gaze slid back to the others as Ratchet and Prime went into attack mode, brandishing cannons and blasters. Dark, sparkless, _cruel _laughter echoed around them.

"I see you," a rumbling voice sang.

* * *

><p><strong>"Evils standing at the door<br>Shadows that fear light no more  
>Grinning jaws, glaring eyes<br>Good bye, good bye  
>Tonight everyone dies"<strong>

**Short chapter with a major cliffie...because I'm in a good mood and I feel like making my lovely readers suffer...**

**Anyway, much love! Hope you enjoyed! **

**Demona and her family and the story, along with "Evils standing at the door" belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	82. Chapter 82

**Chapter 82**

Paradox had enough time to swing her blade and scratch the massive mech's paint before she was snatched up like a little helpless sparkling. She struggled, but the razor like edge of his claws sliced through her armor easily, puncturing and cutting into her soft insides. A hand flew down to clench at split cables in her side. In a matter of seconds she was more focused on blocking her wounds to slow energon flow than freeing herself.

She was pulled into the air. Someone cried for her. She knew it was Ratchet because the cry was for 'Angelus', not Paradox. Paradox shuttered her optics and snarled.

Below her, Optimus was making a near desperate charge. The roof had collapsed, now the walls were beginning to give around them as well. All thirty-two foot of the autobot leader was swatted aside. Prime went spiraling into the piles of debris that were rapidly growing around them.

The mech's other hand swept across the floor, knocking over berths to fly towards Demona and her small family. Paradox twisted to face this monster. She racked her memories for something-anything-that would tell her just who the _pit _this mech was.

But she failed to come up with an answer.

No mech, she finally realized, decepticon or autobot, was like this one. The very air around him reeked of evil. For the first time in her life, the Reaper was consumed with fear. Paradox twisted and clawed, turning herself in his hand and opening several more wounds on her body. She'd never seen this mech before, she knew without a doubt in her head, but her spark told her a different story. In her attempts to see his face, she caught the lethal glint of dead silver.

_Silver. _

_His claws are silver._

_"Sundance!" _Demona's voice rang out sharp and clear, far away from the weak rasp her voice had been before. "Sundance! _RUN_!"

"_MOMMA! DADDY!"_

_FRAG!_

* * *

><p>"We're under attack!" Jazz shouted, barreling through the giant alien sized doors of the infirmary. His visor was raised, bright blue optics wide and searching.<p>

"GEE, you THINK!" Shark snapped, crouched down beside Rex who was covering her with his body. They were hiding beneath the most solid thing in the room and her hair was still white with dust. Their faces were streaked with dirt.

Rex shouted, "What the hells happening!"

"Decepticons! _BIG_ _fraggin_' CONS!" Jazz dropped down and reached for them, "you need to get underground, now!"

"Get Pockets first!" Rex ordered. The bigger of the two was laid out beneath them, protected by both of their bodies.

"No time to pick favorites!" With that, the silver autobot scooped all three of them up and took one last second to scan the room, "Where's Gears and the others?"

"I don't know!" Rex circled an arm around his girlfriend to keep her from falling off Jazz's hands, "They were gone when we woke up!"

"Fucking demonic trashcans!" Shark snarled, "I'll slash all their tires!"

"Babe, that's _not_ going to help us!"

"No one asked you!"

Jazz flashed them an amused but tense grin. Just as he turned to leave, Jo came stumbling back in, her youngest brother in her arms and oldest right beside her. Without a word, the mech shifted Rex and his group to one arm and used his free one to lift the other three.

Rex felt Shark duck into him when the base started collapsing around them. Jazz took off, growling when boulders and steel beams started slamming into him from above. For the most part, Rex kept his eyes closed, but at one point he felt the saboteur stumble and he looked to make sure they weren't about to complete a huge face plant in the middle of this mess.

He wished he hadn't.

Through the new sky lights in the ceiling, he caught Ghost flipping through the air like a damn contortionist to avoid decepticon fire. And the decepticon doing the firing was _friggin_' huge. Like, bigger than Megatron huge.

And that meant this bastard was twice as scary.

"What the HELL-Jazz, who _are _they?" Jo called up.

Jazz hesitated, a brief look of fear flashing through his eyes, "I don't know."

"Jo!" the oldest of her three brothers abruptly cried, "Jo! Where's Carter?"

Rex lifted his head again to stare at them with wide eyes. He counted in his head-her youngest brother was curled up in her lap. Her older one was crouched down beside her, hanging on for dear life...but that was all. _Carter...SHIT. There's only two of them!_

The color literally drained from Jo's face. She searched frantically around Jazz's arm like her missing brother would just pop out of some secret compartment or something. She turned her eyes up to Jazz, "We have to go back!"

The mech clenched his teeth and kept running.

"JAZZ!"

"Why isn't he..." Shark whispered, "Rex, why isn't he stopping?"

"I'm not turnin' back! It's too dangerous!" He abruptly said, loosing his trademark accent.

"But-" Jo started. Rex cut her off, wrath exploding through him, "You're just going to leave them to die! What about Gears? What about Alex? That's my fucking _family_!"

In a liquid smooth motion, Jazz dropped to a knee, shifted his arms so that all six humans rolled into his hands, and set them in a elevator looking thing.

Rex jumped when Pockets let out a weak shout from being jostled too much and quickly rearrange his damaged legs. Jazz leaned down towards them until his face was inches from theirs. Jo shakily got to her feet but stopped when Jazz turned to her. He swore, "I will bring your family back to you, all of you. I won't rest until I do."

For a moment, none of them said anything. Behind Jazz, the entire base was falling to pieces. Smoke and dust created a fog so thick that they struggled to breath. Through it, they could see the glow of flames in the distance. The sky was dark, the moon blocked out by ugly brown clouds.

_We're in hell, _the thought whispered through Rex's head, _this isn't war. This is hell. _

He snapped back to attention when Shark squared up beside him. Jazz focused on her when she stood up. Despite the explosions and the constant roar of battle, Rex heard her clearly just as he knew Jazz could.

Her eyes were like polished ice, "Bury their asses, or I'll bury yours."

Jazz flashed her another half-hearted, uneasy grin, "You got it, lil miss."

His visor flipped down with a sharp whir. His hand swept across the key pad and the doors slid shut. Jo hit the floor as the elevator plunged down into the earth.

* * *

><p><strong>:3 Got some Jazz in there. I really do adore him, he's been one of my favorites since G1...He deserves more of my attention. <strong>

**:/ Situations not looking too good...**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	83. Chapter 83

**Chapter 83**

"This shit never stops!" Gears hissed. She raised an arm to shield her face as one of the walls exploded outward, stumbling back a few steps. Behind her, Critter was covering his head as well, green eyes narrowed, "Why are they even here? Megatron's dead!"

"If you cut the head off a snake, it can still bite," Gears told him. She dropped to a crouch when the earth shook, turning at the waist to press protectively over her youngest son's back.

Through the rising smoke and dust, she could see the massive form of Ironhide barreling through the wreckage, ice blue eyes glowing in the night.

_Where the hell is everyone? Where's Demona? _Gears clenched her teeth and shoved both of them back out of the way before they were crushed as a bot was sent rolling towards them. The sound of war was so loud it was deafening, but she could only make out a few of the autobots. _Optimus? Ratchet...Where are they? Damn it!_

She fell on her ass when the femme known as Ghost hit the ground beside them, shaking it so bad it felt like her bones were going to bounce right out of her skin. Gears cursed loudly.

Ghost swung back to her feet like getting thrown around like a doll was nothing, rising in an elegant twist of black metals. A hand reformed into a cannon, barrels already lit up with energy.

"HEY!" Gears shouted when the autobot stepped back and nearly squashed them both, "We're right here, dumbass!"

Ghost actually _jumped, _dropping her guard long enough to twist around and stare at them. She snarled, "What the _pit _are you humans doing here!"

"We're out ordering a pizza!" Gears snapped sarcastically.

"Get out or I'll kill you myself!" The femme threatened, "we don't need any worthless distractions!"

_Worthless distractions? Oh, HELL no. _Gears tensed up to unload on her when Critter's sweaty hand clamped down on her arm. He leaned against her for support and used his free hand to point. His voice was panicked.

"Mom! _Look!_"

Gears looked and felt her stomach turn. Her heart froze and her eyes widened, any smart ass remark she was about say vanished. Above them, Ghost also turned to look.

A boy stood bawling in the shadow of a massive decepticon, blonde hair matted down with sweat and blood. He was tiny-four or five years old. His baby blue eyes were squeezed shut and his trembling hands were pressed to his face like they would save him from the nightmare around him.

"No..." Gears whispered. Critter tightened his hold on her and pulled himself closer. He shouted, voice already hoarse from the dirt and smoke, "_CARTER!"_

"I thought all three of them were with Jo!" Gears continued. She stood up to go after him when Ghost abruptly slammed a foot down in front of her, making her fall back to her ass. The red headed woman stared up at the autobot in time to see her hard blue optics change. Before Gears could say anything else, the femme charged forward.

"What the hell is she doing?" Critter asked.

Ghost slid on her wheeled-heels, sending up a spray of debris in her wake. Her cannon-arm was raised in the air, firing blast after powerful blast at the decepticon, drawing his attention away from the child.

"She's..." Gears shakily got back to her feet. Ghost pulled a clean base-ball slide, swinging her other hand down and scooping up the boy _gently_ but quickly. For half a second, Gears was afraid that she'd just drop him on the ground. Ghost didn't. She curled her fingers around him and raised him to her chest like Demona did.

She was protecting him.

"She'...saving him."

Ghost twisted and turned, diving between legs and slinging her body around gracefully so that she was back running in front of him. She shifted forms, dropping to her wheels and peeling back towards Gears and her son.

Ironhide stepped over her, casting her a second-long glance before returning to the decepticon. Jazz came rushing forward to help.

Ghost swung sideways, screeching to a stop in front of the humans. The door facing them flung open, her voice reached them loud and clear, "Inside, _now_."

Gears pulled Critter around and helped him inside before jumping in herself. She barely had enough time to pull her feet in before the door pulled shut. She leaned over her son to press her hands to Carter's face, who was staring with wide, frightened eyes. She started talking, "Carter, sweetie, it's me. You're okay now-nothings going to happen to us while Ghost is here. She's going to protect us."

He blinked slowly back, like he wasn't all there. He finally whispered, "I want Jo."

Gears pulled him into her lap and held him tight, unsure of what to tell him.

If Carter had been in the middle of the battle, no telling what happened to Jo and the others. Her heart squeezed and twisted in her chest, realizing that she didn't know where _anyone _was. Not Pockets, not Rex, not Jo, not Demona, not Sundance...

She closed her eyes but she couldn't stop a few tears from rolling down. Critter wiggled his way into their hug.

Ghost bounced over the debris, driving so fast everything around them was a blur. When she spoke, her voice was tense, "I'm taking you underground. That's the safest place for you to be right now."

"Weren't you just telling us that you'd kill us yourself?" Critter asked, sending a narrow-eyed look at her dash, "why should we trust you?"

"I am tired of burying sparklings."

Gears slowly lifted her head, staring with wide eyes.

"I have had to say good bye to far too many," The autobot kept going, tone strained, "because of Megatron and this endless war. There used to be so much innocence on Cybertron-I loved them all, but I was powerless to save them when the decepticons crawled out of the darkness for the first time. So I will save all those that I can now, organic or cybertronian."

"Who are you?" Gears asked, "you distance yourself and shoot my daughter in the spark and then go on and pull some crazy shit like this?"

Ghost said nothing else. They shot past Wheeljack and missed being rolled over by Sunstreaker somewhere along the way. Before long, Ghost was swinging sideways again and throwing open her door right in front of an elevator looking thing that was, surprisingly, still up and running.

Gears pulled both kids out and pushed them inside, turning one last time to look at Ghost.

The femme seemed to hesitate, before turning sharply and taking off once again.

* * *

><p>Paradox managed to break free, but at a cost.<p>

She wrenched her way out of the razor-sharp claws, stripping away layers of armor and splitting cables and wiring. Down she went, twisting and turning to land on her feet.

Her hidden red optics scanned the area quickly, searching.

Clenched in the other hand, Sundance was struggling as hard as she possibly could. Wrath, black and consuming, filled Paradox. A cold snarl rolled out of her throat as she abruptly changed course, using a plate of armor on his leg to bounce back towards her.

Turns out, they didn't need her help.

Jolt flung out his whips, restricting the charge so he didn't hurt the sparkling. The blades embedded between the cracks in the mechs armor, and the young medic pulled as hard as he could.

Optimus was back on his feet and charging towards them. He reformed his hands and leaped up, calling, "Hang on, Sundance!"

Demona was standing up on her own, hands clenched and the armor around her wrists spinning rapidly. Paradox half expected her claw blades to come shooting out, but remembered at the last minute that Demona didn't _have _any claw blades. _Slag it all._

But the femme unarmed, not stupid. She picked up the serrated leg of one of the broken berths and joined the others in the battle. She jumped up on the berth beside Jolt and used it to launch into the air. She swung her weapon down in a graceful arc, lodging it deep between the knuckles of the hand. His grip loosened, and she swept an arm down to gather her sparkling and dropped down before he could retaliate.

Jolt pulled his whips free with a sharp yank. Prime landed on the giant's shoulder and formed his energon blades only to be plucked like a big tick. The decepticon shook with more laughter, "I'm disappointed, Prime."

Paradox landed on the ground and slid into a stance beside Ratchet, who's optics widened. The autobot medic gaped at the decepticon. He breathed, "_Megatron?_"

The mech laughed harder, like it was all some twisted inside joke. He lifted Prime and squeezed with his claws, smashing their leader's leg. Prime gave a low shout of pain.

"No!" Demona cried. She started forward but Jolt took hold of her and hauled her back to his side. Paradox took a step back, her armor now touching Ratchet's. Angelus screamed inside her, shouting for her to do something, to save Optimus.

But there was _nothing _she could do. _He's too strong. Too big. _

"I," he said when his laughter died down to low chuckles, "am Galvatron."

* * *

><p><strong>Oh yeah.<strong>

**I so totally went there.**

**Got a little bitty teeny tiny bit of good Ghost there, before she turned into, well, a bitch. And yay for finding Carter! Looks like the humans will get out of this one WITHOUT fatal injuries for once...Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed it. Much love to you.**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	84. Chapter 84

**Chapter 84**

After announcing his name, Galvatron turned his gaze to Paradox, a cruel, dark smile pulling at his scarred lip plates, "Hello, my lovely Crimson."

Paradox's frame went cold, spark clenching at the way he spoke the name. She actually took a step back, clenching her fists beneath her blades. Her hidden optics narrowed, her mouth twisted into a snarl. She whispered, "You are not permitted to speak those words."

His smile stretched into a grin. Once again, he reached for her. Ratchet started to pull her back. Demona took a step forward and snarled, "Release him!"

In a liquid smooth, rapid motion, the giant hand shifted forms. A wide cannon turned to the three, like the gaping mouth of a demon. The barrel lit with a bright red glow, the air around them grew heavier and hotter. The amusement left his face, filling with a stone-cold hatred, optics fixed on the femme, "Demona."

Paradox moved forward a step, transforming her blade to blaster to aim right back at him. Ratchet followed her lead, along with Demona. Jolt's whips were crackling with energy, the points aimed at Galvatron's face. The medic warned, voice low, "You will come to regret this day, _Galvatron_."

"We can avoid so much senseless loss of energon," Galvatron started, "if your lovely femme will join me for a little while."

His optics narrowed, tightening his grip on Prime who was putting up a valiant struggle to break free, "Or your precious _Optimus _returns to Primus."

Jolt shook his head. He straightened up to tell him off when Demona abruptly wrenched free and pressed her arm against his chest in a warning to keep quiet. Galvatron never looked away from her, "You and I...we have some...unfinished business to attend to."

"No!" Jolt snarled, "you _won't-_"

"_Jolt!" _Demona interrupted, cutting him an uneasy glance. Paradox chanced a look at them, seeing the way how the mech stood firm and told his bonded, "I will _not_ lose you again!"

"Is the life of a dying femme really above the life of your Prime?" Galvatron pushed, "you're running out of time, _youngling._"

"No!" Optimus called, "Demona, don't-"

Paradox's remaining blade slid loudly into it's sheath on her wrist, gaining all their attention. The blaster broke apart and shifted back into her hand. She bore no weapons, and stepped towards Galvatron. She lifted a hand to him, like she was surrendering.

Clearly, she said, "Take me instead."

A look of shock and horror filled Demona's gaze, "Paradox..."

Paradox whispered, "I know who you are."

Again, the slow smile stretched across his face. Demona tried to move forward but Jolt wouldn't let her go. He locked an arm around her waist, keeping her trapped to him.

"I am the one that first betrayed you," Paradox continued, "I am the one that left the deepest wound. _Take me."_

_"_Angelus!" Ratchet hissed, "Angelus, no!"

Galvatron chuckled darkly and swept his claws towards her, taking care not to drop Optimus when he picked her up, "Even in the body of one of my soldiers, you carry the spark of an autobot."

"Don't forget your end of the deal," Paradox warned, "release Optimus, _now."_

"Oh no, Angelus. I was willing to trade him for Demona, but not you."

Paradox snarled, sinking her fingers into separations of the digits in the claws holding her. Demona raised her blaster again, hearing the words. But before they could attack, Galvatron pushed off the earth and into the air. He transformed halfway, massive wings stretching out from his back. He called, red optics dropping to another monstrous mech below, "Cyclonus! Finish quickly. The prize is ours."

Paradox fought, "Traitorous, pit-spawned slagging-I should have known!" The claws tightened. Her already stripped and broken armor squealed, pressing into her body. "I've learned nothing! Still the fool-headed moron I was before the war!"

Her glowing energon began to spill down, but she wouldn't stop. She managed to get one arm free before a hand pressed weakly against her shoulder. Immediately, her attention turned to Optimus, who was also leaking energon. His scratched and dented battle mask was still in place, but all the fighting determination had left his vivid blue optics. At first, all he could do was stare at her before, plate by plate, the mask slid back.

"Don't," he ordered quietly, "there's not much of you left."

"There never was," Paradox hissed, "I have been shattered since the day of my rebirth."

His grip tightened marginally, "...Angelus."

She focused on him again. He said, "This is where...you've been?"

She turned away, "Stop speaking and save your strength. Your condition is no better than mine."

She shuttered her optics against the howling winds, falling still in Galvatron's claws.

* * *

><p><strong>And that's it for tonight...hope you enjoyed.<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	85. Chapter 85

**Chapter 85**

Without a thought, Demona moved forward to pursue. Her shattered spark pulsed with pain because of both, her condition, and her need to save her family. But Jolt still had his arm around her, and he pulled her back the moment she shifted forward. He pressed her to his chest. His voice was strained, "No, Demona."

"I can save them," She snarled, "let me go!"

"No," Jolt reinforced his hold on her by wrapping the other arm around her. He was careful not to touch her chest, "you can't."

The fight drained out of her as her processor went numb from the realization. Galvatron was already out of sight-for such a big fragging mech, he was fast-and she could feel her connection with Prime fading with distance. The steady wave of strength he'd been giving her was severed. Suddenly, her body was too heavy.

Ratchet was cursing loudly. He swung a fist down in his rage and left a massive indent on the face of one of the berths.

Jolt tensed when he felt Demona lean against him rather than try to pull away. Through their bond, he prodded lightly at her spark, then cried, "Ratchet! She's-"

"Ratchet!" Ironhide cut him off, limping as fast as he could towards them. Everyone turned to the weapon's specialist.

He had one unconscious Bumblebee on his shoulder and a legless Sunstreaker under one arm and a mangled set of chevy twins under the other. There was an exhausted look on his face.

"_Slag_!" Both medics snapped.

* * *

><p>Ghost stared the con in the optic, lip plates twisted in a snarl.<p>

It had been too long since she'd had such a challenge, too long since she'd been face to face with such a monster. Megatron's spawn, the hour she'd gone insane, had been terrible by herself. But this mech...he was on an entirely new level.

All he had to do was swing his arm and autobots dropped, unconscious, to the earth. _Sunstreaker, Mudflap, Skidz and Bumblebee have all fallen. Even Ironhide is injured. Primus. _

A flash of silver to her left, and she ducked just as Jazz popped up and fired above her at the mech's knees, trying to blow out one of his joints. The saboteur shot away before their enemy could strike back. Ghost launched forward, leaping up into the air to fire at his chest. Below, a powerful engine snarled towards them.

Sideswipe raced towards them, folded down into his sleek alternate. He swung his body around and slammed into the mech's foot, effectively making him stumble back a step. Jazz started forward to take advantage of his unbalanced stance.

But the mech pushed off the earth and shot into the air, folding down into an aerial alternate. He flipped in the air, cannons and blasters emerging from under his armor. Ghost had enough time to shout, "DOWN!"

Every single one of the autobots hit the ground and covered their heads as an onslaught of decepticon fire rained down upon them.

Ghost clenched her dentals, holding back screams as she felt her armor literally melt and crack off her frame. Beside her, someone let out a muffled shout of pain.

Her armor gave, and soon her insides were suffering the same fate. It wasn't until her inner most frame was exposed on her arms that the attack let up. In the air, the decepticon pulled a barrel-roll and tore away.

Slowly, Ghost uncurled, cold blue optics staring at the smoke rising from her limbs, at the way her softer layers of armor were dripping off. She clenched her hands, but she couldn't feel them. Her optics raised to Sideswipe when he pushed himself up to his feet, stumbling back at step. There wasn't much of a paint job left on him, and he didn't seem happy about it. He snarled, "When that blasted con comes back-"

"You'll get your butt handed to you on a silver platter," Jazz interrupted. He shook lightly like he was trying to loosen up tense cables, turning to Ghost, "how is everyone?"

"In one piece," Ghost answered.

"Who the slag _was _that?" Sideswipe asked, managing to straighten up, "he blew through everyone like it was _nothing._ Even Sunny..."

"He nearly blew through _us_," Ghost snapped, "_NO _decepticon has that kind of fire-power. Not even Megatron."

"Looks like we got some new players in town," Jazz agreed.

* * *

><p>Sometime later, and very far from base, Galvatron landed. The earth shook when he touched down. He tossed both autobots like dolls.<p>

Paradox hit the ground rolling, and eventually slammed into Optimus. Prime let out a soft groan of pain, shifting to stand up. Paradox pushed herself up to her knees, cursing vividly in her head. She raised a hand to the slices on her sides where the most energon was leaking out. She was already growing light-headed.

Prime helped steady her, tired blue optics raised to Galvatron as the decepticon stepped towards them.

"Would you like to know something interesting, Optimus?" Galvatron asked. A massive set of claws came down and scooped Paradox up. She couldn't stop the snarl that rolled out of her throat.

Galvatron lifted her into the air, studying her with vivid scarlet optics like she was some kind of prize, "This one loved me once, many years ago before you all betrayed me, when my name was Megatron."

"You betrayed yourself," Prime said.

"Maybe," Galvatron turned her so that she was resting in his palm and opened his claws to see her better. Paradox didn't try to get down-from this height it would have done more harm than good, and the mech knew it. She kept clenching at her wounds.

"'The deepest wound'," his tone turned almost thoughtful, "the one that haunted me far into the war."

"You expected me to stay at your side when you were slaying innocent mechs?" Paradox growled.

Abruptly, the claws snapped shut around her. It was completely unexpected, and the sudden pressure nearly put her into a stasis lock. She went slack. He watched her, following the way her warm energon rolled down his claws. His voice softened when he spoke again, "And in the end, _you_ were no different."

* * *

><p><strong>Okay, just FYI, I kinda pulled a dummy here. <strong>

**I know about Galvatron and Cyclonus, but I haven't seen enough of them to have a decent grasp on their personality/attacks. I chose them for the 'boss battles' because I can't stand Sentinel Prime and I don't want to introduce the Fallen in this story. **

**Galvatron is already kind of...crazy, because, seriously. Unicron invading your brain and turning you into someone different would twist anyone around. I'm also giving him his memories as Megatron here, so he's kinda in the same boat as Paradox with the whole memories/spark of Angelus thing. So if I write them totally weird, that's why. If you need to, send me a message to let me know if they're too out of character. **

**Yay for another tiny piece of Paradox/Angelus' history! Yes, she was bonded to Megatron back before the war. Ironic that, after he turned and she suffered from him breaking their bond, she _still _ended up as Demona's mother.**

**Anyway...I have decided that I'm going to do Angelus/Paradox/Ghost story after this one, then Sundance's later. So all your questions about those two will be answered soon. :)**

**Hope you enjoyed! Much love!**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	86. Chapter 86

**Chapter 86**

"Oh..." Gears breathed, pale green eyes wide as she emerged, "...oh my God."

Behind her, Shark and Rex were speechless. Critter, Pockets, Jo, and her brothers were still stashed safely away underground, in case things were still crazy above. Shark stepped forward to stand beside her, silver-like eyes slowly scanning what _used to be _the autobot base. Rex stayed where he was, still and silent like a statue.

The sky was black. The smoke and dirt was so thick it blocked out the moon and the stars, which had always been brightest here. There was a red glow in the distance, and every inch of the base was shattered in piles of rubble as far as the eye could see. Pieces of broken equipment glinted very faintly from the firelight. Among the destruction closest to them, she could make out the form of an autobot, lifeless.

"What...happened?" Gears whispered, "Where..."

"It's so quiet," Shark added.

Gears knelt slowly, ignoring the way her scarred back strained. She dipped her fingers in the dirt, damp with energon. It was cold now, and most of it's glow had diminished, but she could still tell what it was. She lifted her fingers and spread them, "Whose?"

Rex finally moved, kneeling beside her, "Not _her's._ Demonas fine, Gears. She's probably helping Optimus."

Gears closed her eyes, "Of course she is."

"We'll find her," he promised, "and Sundance, and Jolt, and Optimus. We'll find all of them." He turned to Shark, who nodded in agreement.

He helped her back up, keeping an arm around her shoulders so she remained steady, then off they went.

* * *

><p><em>Now...of all times...<em>

Jolt lowered a hand to Demona's face, sad optics fixed on her slack features. Ratchet had put her into a medical stasis to help slow down the sparkling's growth, to keep her alive for just a little bit longer. He had only a few seconds to spare for her, between keeping the chevy twins online and dealing with a hundred other injuries inflicted on the remaining autobots.

Some of the warriors, mechs that Jolt was close to, hadn't made it. Others were hanging on by a mere thread. Ratchet was working without pause, wearing down rapidly between everyone. Jolt had wanted to help, but his spark was clinging to Demona. He couldn't leave her-not while she was like this. He was trying everything to keep her online...but he knew deep down that she was fading.

"What happened to her?"

The sudden question made him jump. He looked at Arcee, one of the few that had made it out in one piece. She was exhausted, but whole. Her expression was concerned, studying his bonded's face carefully. She added, "She doesn't have any injuries."

"The damage is inside," He answered, not even bothering to hide the weakness in his voice, "her spark is shattering."

The femme tensed, "I thought..."

He shook his head. Sundance shifted, on Demona's stomach, sad red optics half-open and staring at nothing.

"What are we supposed to do?" One of the conscious mechs asked, looking to Ratchet and Ironhide for an answer, "they have Optimus."

"And Paradox," Jolt added. Ratchet didn't look up from his work or even acknowledge them. Ironhide was the one to answer, the barrel on one of his cannons spinning.

"We don't have a choice," He said, "if one mech could level our entire base..."

"It's not wise," Ratchet finally cut in, pausing to send them a narrow eyed look, "our numbers have been cut. Half of you are in pieces, the other half is exhausted. We wouldn't stand a chance."

"So we're just going to leave them to die," Another started, "I don't trust that Paradox femme, but Optimus-"

"Galvatron," Jolt said quietly, "_moved his arm_, and every one of us fell. He crushed Optimus' leg with one hand, and nearly crushed Paradox in the other. Paradox was bleeding out energon profusely-she may not even be online. Prime and the Reaper _combined _could not touch him. What makes you think that _we_ have a chance?"

A painful silence fell over everyone. He felt several pairs of optics on him, but his gaze remained on his femme. Her spark was pulsing again, fading and brightening like a bad light. He wrapped himself around her and tried to fill her with strength, but her reaction was slow. Sundance slowly lifted her head, looking at him, "You can't give up, daddy. Not now...when we need you the most. The stories always get darker before the heroes show up."

He shuttered his optics, "There are no heroes, sparkling."

"Bollocks!" Jetfire snapped, making a few conscious bots jump. He took his dented cane and smacked it on the ground, drawing everyone's attention. He was on his aft because one of his legs had been blown off somewhere in the battle. His wings were crumbled and plates of his beard were missing. He scolded the younger medic, "What would Demona say if she heard you say such lies? What happened to the backbone mechs used to have-back in the day, we never failed to rise to the challenge!"

"We are falling apart!" Jolt argued back, "autobots _died _today! Our entire base was _destroyed!_ By _two _decepticons!"

"This war has been happening long _before_ the rise of Megatron and Optimus. Before them, when I was but a sparkling, I witnessed the war between the Primes! My brothers, my _creators _perished before my optics! Don't snap at me, _youngling, _about loss! We have lost this battle, but not this war!"

"STOP IT!" Sundance cried, standing up. She opened her wings slightly, red optics fierce, "Stop fighting!"

She swung to Jolt, "We are _not _falling apart! As long as we have each other, we still have a chance! You were the one that told me that as long as we keep the fallen in her sparks, they _never _truly fade! Momma would stand up and fight, she wouldn't never quit, even if she was the _last _autobot fighting!" Her voice softened slightly, "and neither will I."

She turned her gaze to Jetfire, who was watching her with a proud glow in his optics. Then Sundance turned back to her father, "Heroes are made, not born. They're the ones that never back down, even when the world is at war. _You_ are supposed to be one of those heroes, you're _all _supposed to be! If you fall, you stand right back up. You fight for what's right even if it means standing alone against monsters-that's what makes us autobots, isn't it? Running away, giving up...it's not even an answer."

Her little sides heaved from the effort she'd put into her speech, optics narrowed and fixed on the others. No one moved. No one spoke. Silence fell over them like a thick, heavy blanket.

The sound of shifting armor broke the quiet minutes later. Ratchet shifted his set of tools back into a hand, straightening to look at her with soft optics, "No one said anything about giving up, Sundance."

"Good. Keep it that way." Sundance snorted, shaking her head slightly.

Ironhide chuckled, putting his cannons away. Beside him, Chromia smiled. Jazz crouched on the other side of Demona and Sundance, "Look at you, 'Dance, puttin' the butt-kickin' spirit back into this old bots."

Sundance's expression softened. Jazz added, "You're momma would be proud of you, girl."

Jolt scooped her up in his hands and lifted her so that they were optic-level. Sundance stared at him, hope filling her gaze, "Don't you understand, daddy? We have to keep going."

He reached through and touched her spark. Sundance hummed softly and leaned down to touch her nose to his face. He answered quietly, "Yes, sparkling...thank you."

"The sparkling has made a point," Ghost said, voice soft. She watched the dragon with unusually soft optics. Her gaze turned to Ironhide, "Galvatron and this 'Cyclonus' are decepticons, _not _gods. They _can_ be defeated, and we will find out how. We held off Megatron and his endless hoard our entire lives. For whatever reason, fate has seen it fit to throw them at us next, and I for one will not rest until they have fallen."

"I agree," Ratchet said. He eyed one of the bots warily, "but not until you're life-threatening injuries are taken care of, so sit down. Now. You won't get very far in your 'valiant battle' if you're leaking energon every where."

Jolt placed Sundance back on Demona's body. Ratchet went back to work, Jolt returned to keeping a close optic on his femme.

Jetfire leaned over and smiled at Sundance, "Well-spoken, youngling. I don't believe I've heard such a speech since I was in my second frame."

Sundance smiled back, "I learned from the best, Jetfire."

* * *

><p><strong>:3 Haven't seen Jetfire for a while...<strong>

**And to think that I almost didn't put Sundance in the series...**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	87. Chapter 87

**Chapter 87**

When they found the remaining autobots, all gathered in one area so Ratchet could tend to them, Gears had expected two things. One was Prime discussing retaliation with his soldiers. Second was Demona, Jolt, and Paradox helping Ratchet.

Disappointed was an understatement. Not only was Prime _missing, _so was Paradox. Demona was one of the ones laid out on her back in a medical stasis lock. Jolt was right beside her, Sundance curled up on her stomach. Gears made her way over, climbing through the debris and slipping past unconscious bots, to her daughter. Rex and Shark were right beside her.

Jazz perked up when he saw them, "Did everyone make it out okay?"

"Only one of the nurses was injured," Shark answered since the other two humans were focused solely on Demona, "we found Carter."

He nodded.

Gears reached Demona first, climbing her way up her arm to stand on her shoulder. She scanned her eyes over her girl's body carefully, confusion filling her when she realized that the femme didn't have any serious injuries. She looked up at Jolt, who seemed distant. His hand was resting carefully over Demona's chest, right over her spark, like he was feeling for a heart beat. His expression was broken, like the life was leaving him.

Her heart squeezed.

Rex was standing beside her. He asked, "What's wrong with her?"

It took a moment, but when he finally spoke, he sounded nothing like the mech he used to be, "Her spark is breaking."

"I thought you said she was stable!" Gears snapped, lifting a hand to push through her hair, "what the _hell_-"

"It's the sparkling."

Her insides seemed to freeze. She stepped closer, raising a hand to rest on his arm, "What...are you talking about?"

"He's growing, taking energy she doesn't have. Under normal circumstances, her spark could support him. But..."

"She was already weak," Rex added softly.

"Ratchet said he told her early about what was happening, and that he gave her the choice to have it aborted...she wouldn't. She was going to hold on as long as she could to give the sparkling a chance."

_The baby is killing her..._Gears looked down at Demona's face, trying to summon some kind of anger, but she couldn't. She just stared, mind numb. After minutes of just studying and trying to comprehend, she whispered, "Why didn't you tell me, Dem?"

"She didn't tell anyone, not even me."

Rex crouched, lowering a hand to carefully touch her armor, "So she'll die."

"...Yes."

"But why would she just give up?" Rex pushed, "how could she just leave us?"

"She's not giving up," Gears answered, "this is her baby, Zach...she's not going to let him go...I'm...happy that she isn't."

"How could you say that?" Shark snapped, "isn't she supposed to be _your _alien robot child?"

"Don't get me wrong," Gears whispered, "Dem is my little girl, my angel. I love her more than life, just like my boys. I would do anything for my kids...that's why I get it. You don't, because you ain't had any kids. But one day, you will. You'd be surprised what a woman will do to keep her babies safe."

She knelt and placed her hand between the spaces of Jolt's fingers, feeling the subtle heat from Demona's spark, "Even if it means giving up her life for them."

A few quiet tears rolled down her face. She whispered to Demona, "See? I told you that you'd be a good momma."

* * *

><p>Just when she thought she reached her breaking point, Galvatron eased up on the pressure in his claws. Paradox went slack in his palm, unable to move. Distantly, she realized that she was laying in a pool of her own energon. The thought sent a cold shock through her spark.<p>

Galvatron watched in dim fascination, "You always were the one, Angelus...only you could tear the love out of your spark and train yourself into a killer for revenge the way you did."

Paradox tried to clench her hands into fists, but the farthest she got was a slight twitch of the fingers.

"How...empowering it is to hold you again."

A claw lowered to drag down her side, deepening wounds she already had. Paradox managed to shift away, shuttering her optics. Below, Prime shouted, "Galvatron!"

"Patience is a virtue, Optimus. Your time is coming," Galvatron answered.

Paradox silenced them both when she started to shake with weak laughter. She whispered, "You have lost, _Megatron."_

When she knew she had his full attention, she continued, "I told you that she would never be yours. She has always been mine...My spark, my hope. You were powerless against her the day of her creation...so much effort to craft an obedient, sparkless weapon...look where she is now."

His expression shifted from amusement to wrath. Paradox smiled tiredly, even though she knew what was coming. Soundlessly, Galvatron's claws closed over her body and cut into her effortlessly. His hand fisted around her small form, crushing. Energon lines in her body popped, sending the fluid up her throat and dripping through her dentals. She felt nothing, but she could hear her frame break beneath the pressure.

"I am _Galvatron,_" He snarled. Below, Prime froze, optics wide.

"Demona will perish," Galvatron promised, opening his hand once more and tilting it so Paradox slid down and fell towards the earth. "I will crush her, just as I have crushed you."

Paradox didn't feel it when she slammed into the earth, damaged pieces of her body snapping off and scattering on impact.

She didn't move.  
>She didn't speak.<br>She couldn't.

Inside, Paradox was sinking into Angelus, into her best memories. The last thing she saw before her body shut down was the sight of tiny red optics opening for the first time, and the weight of her sparkling, only seconds old, in her hands.

* * *

><p><strong>Crappily written...Primus, Gears...<strong>

**And Paradox...**

**Excuse me while I go cry and scream in grief in my room. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	88. Chapter 88

**Chapter 88**

"They took off with Optimus _and _Paradox?" Rex asked.

Ratchet vented heavily, slowly dropping down to his butt after hours of running back and forth between autobots. They were stable now, he had patched up the worst injuries as best as he could with ruined equipment and materials. The medic drug a hand down his face, "Yes."

"So what the hell are we going to do?"

"Not _we," _Jazz said, crouching beside them, "We've seen how tough you organics can be, but this is something that even us 'bots haven't seen before."

"How do you even start?" Shark pushed, "you have _no idea _of _where_ they are, or if they're even _alive._"

Rex paused to look at Gears when he heard her move. The woman was curled up in that safe spot on Demona's chest. She hadn't completely shut down like she did when Pockets and Critter were missing, but she was distant.

"We can't track them," Ghost added, "without the proper equipment. There's no possible way we could find them."

"None of you are in the condition to fight, anyway," Gears said quietly, "if _two_ of those bastards could turn base into our own personal hell...we're going to need one _badass _plan."

"Well, a 'badass plan' isn't even considerable with so little information," Ratchet vented again, "all we know is that Galvatron is Megatron reborn. We can assume that Cyclonus is in a similar situation-no autobot has heard of him, either."

"Which is _another _thing I don't get," Shark crossed her arms, "I thought evil-mojo Demona ripped the shit out of Megatron-she split him in _half. _Um, am I the only one that thinks him coming back to life after being sliced and diced is even _a little _questionable? What has that kind of power?"

"She's right," Jolt agreed, "even if it was possible for a decepticon to salvage Megatron's spark-it'd take _years _to construct a new body of that size. This was done in a matter of weeks."

"Primus himself would have had to pull him from his grave..." Ratchet trailed off, optics narrowing and turning down in deep thought. After a moment, he started again, "Or Unicron."

Rex raised an eyebrow when every conscious autobot tensed or recoiled at the name. Ironhide sent the older medic a look, "Have you overheated your processor, mech?"

"Think about it," Ratchet pushed, "Unicron was the one that turned the Fallen against his brothers. He is the one that brought the first evil into existence...Megatron was a monster by himself, but if Unicron were to..."

"That's the most ridiculous slag I've ever heard," Ghost snapped, "I thought medics relied on proof, not old legends!"

"It's no legend," Jetfire cut in, "before decepticons and autobots, there was Primus and Unicron. There's more than enough history to provide proof, femme."

"Who's Unicron?" Rex asked.

He was ignored. Ironhide put in his opinion, "Why would Unicron choose now, of all times, to make an appearance?"

"Optimus is the last of the Primes," Ratchet answered, "Megatron has fallen, providing a new puppet for him to control. Earth is a new planet. The setting is right-"

"Um, _hello_-let's pay attention to the annoying, insignificant human down here," Rex snapped. Again, no one answered.

Ghost snorted, "_Lies._ No gods exist in our world."

"You've never had the privilege of seeing the heart of Cybertron, have you?" A scout snapped, glaring at her.

"Have you?" she shot back with an equally dark glare, "that honor is usually reserved for _Primes._"

He had nothing to say. Ghost turned back to Ratchet, "Do you know who else believed in these 'histories'? My little sister, Angelus."

Ratchet visibly tensed.

"Oh, she was so _young _and _innocent, _there was so much _hope _in her optics. Angelus adored the old stories as a sparkling-she asked me to read them to her every night before she fell into recharge. She loved the idea of an ultimate good to battle the evil. A light, you might say, that never died, even in the darkest times. Primus meant life to her, and one of her dreams was to someday, even if it was unlikely, go underground and see his supposed spark pumping life into our home planet."

A heavy silence fell over them. Ghost's eyes were twice as cold, twice as dark. "I remember the day she came home from long years spent in the mines. There was a new light in her optics, a bit of a spring in her step, and I knew it then that she had finally fallen in love with some lucky mech. His designation was Megatron, and he was the older brother of our close friend, Optimus. I remember onlining the morning she was to return to the mines. I saw her kneeling in the sunlight, hands touching Cybertron's surface. When I asked her what she was doing, she told me that she was speaking to Primus, thanking him for everything, good or bad, in her life. And I remember thinking that, if she could believe in and love something so much, it _must _be real."

Her optics narrowed, "Only weeks after, Megatron murdered the senator and several of his guards with his own bare hands, mad with pure, blackening wrath. He went from a humble mine worker who loved his brother and his mate to a sparkless killer in a matter of minutes. Angelus fought to save him-she loved him so much that she couldn't imagine a life without him anymore, but even _she _stood no match against his anger. Megatron wanted her at his side as his servant and personal entertainment, but Angelus would not have it. So he severed the bond, and left her to suffer from spark-break. I flew to the mines, and I found her laying face-down among the destruction, on the verge of offlining. She spent her entire life loving Primus, but her faith gave her _nothing_ short agony. Angelus survived, but she wasn't the same. She was distant, broken. There was no ultimate good to shut out the evil, no undying light to show her the way back to me."

Her gaze turned back to the scout, "There was just an innocent angel that fell for a demon in disguise, a demon that ripped out her wings and hanged her with her own halo."

The scout was speechless, staring at her with wide optics.

"Angelus was..." Ratchet paused, as if the words hurt him, "one of Megatron's first victims...I believe that, out of all those he offlined, she suffered the worst."

"What evil could be greater than the spark of a mech that destroyed the one that loved him more than life itself?" Ghost asked, "there is none."

"Then where did Galvatron come from?" Jazz asked, pushing them, very gently, back on track.

Below, Rex gave a soft whistle, "Damn. That was..._depressing_."

Shark shot him a look.

* * *

><p><em>Angelus.<em>

Optimus stared with wide optics at the crumbled form several feet ahead of him. His spark clenched in his chest, the name repeated in his processor. _Angelus. _

Paradox was Angelus. After a life of wondering what had happened to one of his closest friends...she'd been right there, in reach, for four years.

Galvatron raised his claws higher, turning them in the bright moonlight so that Paradox's-_Angelus'- _energon almost glittered beneath it. The massive mech growled low in his chest, "I would appreciate it if you didn't come back from the dead this time, my dear, I'd hate to crush you again."

_...No..._

_I just found her..._

His hands clenched into fists. His optics dropped to them, seeing the streaks of energon, _her _energon, that had spread over his palm when he'd placed his hand on her shoulder on the flight here. He shuttered his optics.

Galvatron lowered his gaze to Optimus and stepped towards him. The autobot felt the earth shudder with every step, but didn't rise to face him. His leg was damaged beyond use, anyway.

The pain in his spark raged, pain he hadn't felt in years. Blinding wrath corrupted his processor, telling him to destroy. He fought it at first, forcing himself to remember what it meant to be a Prime, but with every passing second, he grew weaker. Just as he was buckling beneath it, something touched his spark, feather-light.

His entire frame went rigid.

The presence faded, before coming back and touching his spark again. His optics widened. A voice whispered, weak but desperate, _'Prime, don't...you...must...fight it...'_

_Demona._

_'I'm going to find you. I'm going to bring you home.'_

And somehow, deep in his spark, he knew she would.

* * *

><p><strong>:(<strong>

**Probably the last one for the night...**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	89. Chapter 89

**Chapter 89**

"So...You have gods," Shark said slowly, "Primus is the good guy, and this Unicron is the evil one."

"Yes," Ratchet continued, "Unicron, the chaos-bringer, was rising in power. Primus created the first cybertronians-the very first Primes-to defeat him. In turn, Unicron warped and twisted the spark of one of these Primes, turning him into the Fallen. Primus and his creations prevailed, defeating Unicron and putting him into a deep stasis. The Fallen vanished, hiding away until his master was ready for his return. Primus himself was exhausted, and made the planet Cybertron around himself, becoming our home planet."

"It's said that his spark can be seen underground, pumping energon throughout cybertron and providing life," Jetfire said softly.

"Does every race have a religion now?" Shark muttered.

Rex raised an eyebrow at them, "Like God and Lucifer."

Ratchet hesitated, "Yes...and no."

"Alright," Ghost started slowly, tone defensive, "lets say that the old legends are true, and Primus and Unicron both inhabit the galaxy..."

"Then Unicron brought Megatron back online, as Galvatron, an entirely new nightmare."

Sideswipe shook his head, posted beside his brother, "This whole thing is buckets of crazy."

"But why?" Shark asked, "Why now?"

"Because it's when we least expected it. Megatron, our enemy since the beginning of the war, has finally fallen. We were all more than ready to accept a life of peace. Optimus is the last Prime...he's the only thing that stands between Unicron and his goal."

"So, in dumber terms," Rex said slowly, "your god of chaos-Unicron-pulled Megatron from death, gave him some CPR, and pumped him full of giant alien robot steroids?"

In the back, Jolt abruptly tensed. He leaned over Demona, shifting his hand to rest against her shoulder instead of her chest. Gears was aware, too. She was sliding down Demona's side to land on the ground, pale green eyes wide. Sundance uncurled, staring at her mother with hopeful optics.

Everyone froze when Demona whispered, "Not...Megatron..."

"Demona, don't-" Jolt cut himself off with a curse when her optics onlined, light dim. Sundance stood up and hummed happily, "Mom!"

"Impossible..." Ratchet whispered, "_I put her _into a stasis lock!"

Rex smirked, "You oughtta know by now, Doc Bot, that our Demi is one tough girl."

"Don't move," Jolt tried again, tone strained. Demona wrapped her fingers around his wrist.

"He's resting," she said softly, "I have enough strength." He stared down at her. Demona stared back. Slowly, he let her go. Instead, he sat down beside her and helped her sit up, an arm around her middle protectively. Demona leaned forward as if she didn't have any energy.

Ratchet was at her side in half a second, kneeling down and muttering curses.

Sundance climbed up her mothers knee. Demona scooped her up in her hands and brought her close to her body. Again, the sparkling began to hum, nuzzling into her front. Demona seemed to gather her strength before she spoke again, "I thought it was him...but...it's not...it's his spark, but he's...insane...it's not...him anymore..."

Ratchet tensed, "You knew he was coming. That's why you were trying to wake up Optimus...why you told me to run."

She nodded. Her tired pale optics turned to Gears when the woman moved closer and laid a hand on her leg. Gears stared up at her with teary eyes, "Dem, babe...why aren't you resting?"

"Prime is online," Demona answered.

"Of course..." Jolt watched her expressions carefully, "the bond."

"Do you know where he is?" Ironhide asked.

Demona fell quiet for a minute, fingertips gently stroking Sundance's back. When she answered, she looked at the two older mechs, "Not the exact coordinates, but I could lead you there."

Jolt tensed again. This time, Ratchet beat him to it. The older medic's optics hardened, "_No_, youngling. You're taking a massive risk as it is expending energy now that you _don't _have."

"I won't let him offline again, Ratchet," Demona whispered, "And Paradox..."

"I know, Demona." Ratchet said quietly. She raised wide optics to him. The medic suddenly looked exhausted, "I know everything."

"Then you _know _why I can't let her go," Demona shifted Sundance to her arm so she could spare a hand to clench at his shoulder. Her expression hardened, "If you want to find Optimus, I _must_ go."

"No!" Gears snapped, "You can't just-Dem, you're not even...God, why do you do this to me! And why the _hell _didn't you tell me about the sparkling!"

"And _you_!" Gears turned on Ratchet next, "YOU should have let me know that she was in the med bay! Why didn't you?"

"ENOUGH!" Ghost snapped, "There are more important things to discuss, human!"

Gears slowly turned around to stare at her. Demona tensed and dropped her hand from Ratchet's arm to pick up her adopted mother before she went over there and slashed Ghost's tires.

Ghost focused on Demona, "You carry Megatron's spark and the very same wrath that destroyed Cybertron. You're a complete danger to this faction and this planet, and in all honesty you should be forbidden from spreading your disease through your sparklings-"

Jolt stood up. Sundance uncoiled like a snake and bared her small but sharp fangs in a cold snarl that sent chills down Rex's spine. Gears just about blew a gasket and Rex himself had to fight the urge to take a bat to the femme's face.

Ghost's optics darkened, "-but considering you're the only one that has any ties to Megatron or Prime, there's no choice but to have you show us the way." She looked at Ratchet, "and unless you want to be burying your Prime, I suggest you let her."

"Listen here, you stuck-up-" Gears growled. Demona cut her off by covering her with her fingers.

Demona sent the femme a sharp look, "Thank you for the support, Ghost."

"I don't like it," Arcee said slowly, "but they're right."

Ratchet vented sharply.

Jolt crouched beside her, "Demona, please...don't do this. You don't have the strength," he touched her face to get her attention, "I'm begging you, don't."

"He's very strong now," She said quietly, leaning against him, "it won't be much longer." There was a very small, soft smile on her face.

Jolt shuttered his optics, "That's what I'm afraid of."

* * *

><p><strong>Ghost tends to yo-yo between ok and bitch for some reason...<strong>

**Ah, Jolt. **

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	90. Chapter 90

**Chapter 90**

"NO!" Jolt and Gears snapped at the same time.

Demona vented softly, raising a hand to press lightly to her chest as if it pained her. Her optics dimmed slightly. Jolt tightened his hold on her to keep her from falling over, and added, "You're not strong enough. You _must _stay here!"

"Then what do you suggest we do!" Demona argued.

"Send your mate," Ghost answered, "use your bond with him to show him the way."

Everyone paused to stare at her. Ghost continued, "We could use him, anyway."

"That's still a great risk to Demona," Ratchet said slowly, "When Optimus was taken, it cut her strength in half. If Jolt was to leave..."

"Whose life is worth saving more?" Ghost questioned, optics narrowed, "Megatron's spawn, already well on her way to the well of allsparks, or our leader and our last Prime?"

"Don't," Jolt snarled, "call her that."

"So, we've gone from hosting decepticons to denying the truth. This faction really is falling apart-"

"SHUT THE HELL UP!" Gears shouted, cutting her off. Ghost turned on her immediately. The woman was still sitting in Demona's hand, glaring at her with hell-fire green eyes.

"All I've heard for the past hour is you running your smart-ass mouth-YES, Megatron is Demona's father, YES he raised her. But Demona _abandoned _his ass because she _knew _in her spark what was right! She has done nothing but fight for the autobots, for earth, for _us_ since she came here! I don't know who the hell you are, and I really don't give a _shit_, but you have NO RIGHT to talk about my daughter that way!"

"And what will happen if I do it anyway?" The femme challenged, moving forward a step.

Demona shifted Gears closer to her body, light red optics narrowing into a glare packed with warning. Sundance hissed from her perch on her arm, and Jolt tensed beside her. A few sparks of electricity were running up and down his wrist.

"Then I will rip your smug, metal ass apart, piece by piece," Gears promised, "I will make you _regret _it."

"You're just a weak human-"

"Uh-uh," Jazz cut in, "You'd, uh, be surprised at what misses James is capable of." Ghost stopped, turning her gaze to Sideswipe when the mech put in his opinion. His expression, for once, was completely serious.

"When Skywarp took Alex, Gears literally _climbed _up his leg and _ripped _him apart. She caused so much damage with her bare hands that he was forced to transform and retreat, and she would have done _a lot _more if one of his main lines hadn't exploded in his face. I wouldn't underestimate her, Ghost."

"These humans are small," Ratchet said slowly, "but that just means they can get under armor and cause damage a standard bot can't. The earth was soaked with energon when they found her, all by her own hand."

"I tend to...lose my mind when someone messes with my kids," Gears kept glaring, "and Demona is _one of my kids._"

Ghost stared back for a moment, studying her like she was waiting for the woman to back down. Gears didn't.

Ghost stepped back and turned away, going back to the original topic, "Unless you want to send the _sparkling _out-the medic is our only answer. So make up your mind, Prime is running out of time."

Jolt hesitated, looking down at Demona. She nodded slowly, "I can hang on until you come back."

He wasn't convinced, so she added, "Jolt, I survived tearing through my own spark and then through sparkbreak when Megatron's spark took the Cube...I survived losing you."

"Demona, I..."

"I have Sundance," Demona pushed gently, "she grows stronger every day."

"And I'll stay," Wheeljack said, speaking up for the first time since the battle.

The mech had suffered injuries to his legs, but had enough medical knowledge to patch himself up since Ratchet was busy with the others. Wheeljack cast the younger medic a weak smile, visible in his optics, "I know enough to keep her kickin' until you and Ratchet come back."

Jolt nodded, Ratchet vented, "This is unwise...but we have no other choice."

"We've settled on an answer, then?" Ghost faced them again. After a moment, she looked to Ratchet and Ironhide, "Good. This is what we're going to do-"

"Hold on a second," Rex interrupted, "who died and put you in charge, blackie?"

"Quiet, boy," Ratchet said tiredly, "Ghost knows what she's doing when it comes to strategy and rescue missions."

"...As I was saying, I imagine that there's more than _two _of them wherever they're hiding. If _one _could send this many bots to the medical wing with heavy damage, than we can't afford a head-on confrontation."

"Duh," Sideswipe snorted.

Ghost ignored him, "So we split them up, peel away the layers until we reach the core-Galvatron and Optimus. We'll have to move fast and be absolute. The trick is to make our handful of soldiers look like an entire army, with lots of flash and noise. Nothing dangerous, just enough to cause a distraction long enough to get in and out. I'm sure Wheeljack can help us in that department. We'll set up different parties in different areas around their base, setting up the false explosions a safe distance away. Each group will have a different route to take when it's time to break loose and head home, so we keep them confused. Jazz, Arcee, Chromia, Flareup and Sideswipe-you'll all be in charge of these groups."

She knelt in the debris, sweeping most of it away to reveal a thick layer of dirt, dust, and ash. In it, she drew out a diagram, pointing out and labeling the groups.

"Ironhide, since you're the only one capable of hauling a trailer big enough to hold Optimus, you'll be waiting at a half-way point. There, Jolt and Ratchet will wait with you to see to any fatal damage before we head home. Don't waste time-fix what absolutely _needs _to be repaired, then pack up and get the pit out. The last team will be built up of strong but quick bots, and they will be the ones in charge of getting inside and getting our MIA's out."

"Aren't you...forgetting something?" Sideswipe asked. Ghost raised her optics to him, then to Arcee when she continued, "Won't they see us coming?"

"That's where I come in," Ghost said, a slow, smile spreading across her face, "I've got a secret weapon of my own that will scatter their sensors. They won't see us come and they won't see us go."

"That's..." Jazz frowned, "slagging crazy."

"But it'll work," Ghost said simply, "we used the same plan to rescue a senator once. I thought it was insane then, but I know for a fact that it can be done."

"That's a lot of teams for so little bots," Arcee continued.

"It's possible," Ratchet muttered. He raised his voice to it's normal tone, "We'll have to move the wounded and the rest of the humans to a safer place, though. In case Galvatron decides to send someone back to...finish what he started."

"Can you transform, Jetfire?" Ghost asked.

"Of course I can."

"Take to the skies and scout for a safe temporary base, and Wheeljack..."

The inventor looked at her with a questioning look.

"Explosives is what you're best at. You better get to work."

* * *

><p><strong>Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. <strong>


	91. Chapter 91

**Chapter 91**

"How is he?"

Critter smiled tiredly up at his older sister who was, surprisingly, sitting up on her own. Her light red optics were focused on Pocket's, who was stretched out on a make shift stretcher on the flattest part of the rocky earth.

The autobots had relocated their injured and the humans to an emergency cybertronian sized bunker that was half buried in the face of a mountain not so far away from base. Although half the massive building was in the open, Wheeljack had, at some point, created some type of technology that tricked a 'bot's optics into seeing nothing but the terrain. Not even a faint outline or out-of-place smudge.

The base was hidden _and _hard to get to, because on the other side of the bunker the earth literally _dropped_ off. When they'd first arrived, Critter had made his way over to the edge and looked down. His stomach had dropped to his malformed feet when he realized that he _couldn't see _the bottom. He couldn't look away-not until Demona's fingers curled gently around him and she lifted him to bring him against her chest.

"He's doing good," Critter answered, patting her hand, "Ratchet said that a lot of his bones have healed and most of the damage on his organs is gone. He's healing really fast...thanks to that grumpy old medic."

Demona smiled softly, "That grumpy old medic does know his way around the infirmary, doesn't he?"

"This 'grumpy old medic'," Ratchet said sharply, optics narrowed but amused, "will be throwing wrenches if you don't lay down and recharge, youngling."

The smile broadened into a weak grin. She still had a hand pressed to her chest plates, and she was leaning forward slightly with her other hand on the ground beside her brothers to support herself. She tilted her head up at the mech, "Has anyone ever told you that you have such a _charming _personality?"

Despite the situation, Ratchet chuckled.

Ghost stepped forward, checking something on her wrist armor, "Wheeljack, report."

"There wasn't much materials left over from the attack, but," Wheeljack lifted a handful of curious metal spheres with indents and buttons on them, "I've somehow managed to meet your number-there's enough for everyone to share with a con or two."

"That's what I wanted to hear." Ghost turned towards the others, "Have you secured a trailer wide enough to carry Optimus?"

"Somehow," Ratchet said grimly, "I don't know whether to feel blessed or cursed this day...between losing lives and having our home destroyed and leader bot-napped to managing to even _find _all the materials we need for a rescue."

"We were never blessed," She answered, snapping her armor back in place with a flick of her arm and walking towards the circle of able bots, "our kind has been cursed since the beginning of the war. The only hope we can allow ourselves is that as long as we live, something stands against the decepticons, and therefore, other sentient beings in existence have a chance for peace, even if for a little while."

Ratchet sent her a sad look, "As cold as your spark is now, you're beginning to sound more and more like the kind femme that used to care for the orphaned sparklings on Cybertron."

Ghost's optics turned colder, if it was possible, narrowing. The light of them paled so much that they nearly turned white, as if the color of her very spark had faded at the softly-spoken words, "That femme died years ago, Ratchet. It'd be wise of you to remember that."

"Damn, you're fuckin' chipper!" Rex said sarcastically, cutting a glare at her. His brown eyes were full of pain and anger, hand raised to rest against Mudflaps' shoulder. Somewhere in the mess of moving everyone, he'd finally spotted his partners in crime, some of the worst victims of the attack. His mood had dropped instantly, and not even Shark could pull him away from the two. He added, "always _service with a smile_!"

His little remarks were ignored. Ratchet and Ghost had a minute-long stare down before the femme turned away. "Jazz, I'm putting you in charge of Hotshot and Bluestreak."

"Yes ma'am," Jazz said with a light grin.

Jolt knelt beside Demona, slipping a hand around her elbow to get her attention. Without looking at him, Demona leaned into his chest, whispering, "Jolt, promise me you'll be careful."

"No force could keep me from you, Demona," He answered, "we'll bring them home...now, you promise me that you'll hang on until I come back."

"I promise, love."

Sundance stood up on her back legs and placed her claws on Jolt's face. She gave him a stern look, "You come back, daddy, or you'll be in a lot of trouble!"

Jolt chuckled softly, "I will, sweetspark."

"C'mon mech," Jazz said, walking over, "Ghost is crackin' that whip, we're fixin' to roll out."

Jolt wrapped an arm around Demona's body and squeezed gently before standing up. When Demona looked up at the saboteur, he smiled easily at her and dropped down in a liquid-smooth motion to give her a hug, "Don't worry, Demi, I'll keep 'em out of trouble. You just worry about that sparkling, alright?"

Before she could react, Ghost gave the order. One by one, the mechs and femmes folded down into their alternates and peeled out of the bunker with their engines roaring.

Demona watched them go. Already, her spark was struggling to stay lit with Jolt putting more and more distance between them. Sundance jumped up and watched them go with wide optics.

Gears stared towards the exit with soft pale green eyes, "There they go...our soldiers."

"Into the darkest corners of the pit," Wheeljack added quietly, "Primus, please let them all find their way back home."

"They'll kick ass," Jo reassured, settled between all three of her sleeping brothers, "they always do."

They all turned away when a quiet but painful mechanical whine echoed through the bunker. Demona was barely holding herself up, optics dim to the point of being offline. Wheeljack came to her side instantly, easing her down on her back, "Easy, femme."

"Be strong, momma," Sundance whispered, running to her side to nuzzle into her throat cables, "we all need you."

* * *

><p>Somewhere between having his weapons torn from his frame and being trapped in energon-soaked claws, Optimus realized that he wasn't going to make it out of this one, that he was going to offline here, just like Angelus.<p>

Distantly, he wondered just _what _had happened to his brother in the beginning to twist him so horribly into a monster...to later become a complete nightmare. Megatron had once been good, hard-working, merciful...

But now the shattered remains of his own mate lay face down, in pieces, on the earth. She would have been face down in her own energon if the majority of it wasn't currently rolling down Galvatron's claws.

"Optimus Prime, completely powerless in my hands...what to do with this _rare _opportunity_." _Galvatron grinned wickedly, "should I take pity on you, and end you quickly...or should I twist and burn you, until you're screaming for death..."

Optimus didn't answer. He was too busy trying to stay online. Galvatron began to squeeze, very slowly. Optimus' thick armor began to crumble like cheap thin. _This is it, _he thought.

But then, seconds before he completely crushed the autobot, Galvatron stopped. His optics narrowed in annoyance as another purple giant landed behind them.

"Galvatron!"

The massive decepticon turned to face the mech that had dared interrupt him.

Cyclonus knelt, "The remaining autobots have left their base."

"To come rescue their Prime," Galvatron growled.

"Yes...but they've left their wounded behind."

The annoyance faded in an instant, "...Demona."

"Yes, my lord."

Optimus' energon ran cold. The name made him more aware. _Primus, no..._

Galvatron abruptly broke out into ugly, cruel laughter, like the entire thing was a very, very fun game to him. He swung around to face Angelus' broken body but didn't lower his optics from Optimus, "Oh...now _there's _an idea. Tell me, Optimus, how much do you love that failed creation of mine?"

But all the mech could say was a snarled, _"DON'T."_

Again, Galvatron laughed. He activated his transformation routines and ordered, "Cyclonus. Keep an optic on things while I'm gone...I'm afraid I have...loose ends to take care of."

His laughter echoed long after he took to the sky and shot away. Cyclonus took one look down at the femme before turning away to return to his station.

He didn't see the way how her fingers dug into the sand.

* * *

><p><strong>Wrote the last part of this chapter, my face was like this; 8D <strong>**YEAH BETCH!**

**...Anyway...wow, things are working out really well, aren't they? What with...99% of the able autobots _abandoning _Demona and the other wounded and humans and pit-spawned-slagging-fragging _Galvatron _making a personal trip _back _to base...**

**I smell trouble.**

**Much love, hope you enjoyed!**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	92. Chapter 92

**Chapter 92**

"This was a _bad _idea..." Wheeljack muttered, keeping his hand mere inches above Demona's chest plates. His optics were squinted in concentration.

Gears was posted beside her face, leaning over Demona's cheek plates. She asked, "Can you do _anything_?"

He slowly shook his head, "Not in this state. She needs her mech right now. He's the only one that could provide a steady flow-" he cast a look at Sundance to see her giving him a sharp look, and seemed to amend himself, "that's _big _enough to give her what she needs _now._ Sundance is helping, she's probably the only thing here keeping Demona online, but her spark isn't powerful enough to support an adult cybertronian."

"Megatron picked the best time to come back to life," Gears said quietly, "besides Dem...I don't think I've ever seen the autobots this scrambled before. I honestly don't know how we're going to make it."

"You can't talk like that, mom," Critter said, making his way over. He sat up straight and placed a hand on one of Demona's horns, "we're all going to make it, we always do. Even sister."

Wheeljack studied the boy carefully.

"This shit is never going to end," Rex said quietly, "You know, six years ago I was hoping I'd be living a peaceful abnormal life, but not this abnormal."

"Whether we like it or not," Shark added, "this is the life we're stuck with."

"The thing about war is," Jo pushed a hand through her hair, "in the end, no ones safe. Not even children. My dad once told me that the quickest ways to destroy a nation were through pride and war...and it wasn't even ours to begin with."

"I don't think..." Wheeljack worded himself carefully, "Optimus meant the war to take over earth, too."

"I know he didn't," Jo raised her eyes to him, "but it happened. I just don't want my brothers to grow up in it."

"Mine, too," Sundance said quietly, looking at her mother.

"So it's for sure a boy?" Gears asked, a small smile spreading across her face, "a Jolt-junior?"

"Yeah, mimi," The sparkling grinned back at her, "I got a little brother now, and momma said I could name him."

"Oh yeah?" Critter joined in, "so what's his name?"

Sundance hummed softly for a moment, before answering, "Flashback."

Shark rose an eyebrow, "Flashback?"

Gears shot her a look of warning, "Why Flashback, sweetie?"

"Because he's going to be _really _fast."

Wheeljack chuckled, "How do you know, sparkling?"

"My spark tells me."

Wheeljack was about to comment when Demona's body abruptly tensed, fingers curling into a fist. Gears straightened, "Dem?"

"They've separated..." The femme said quietly, "we know where Prime is...Jolt is leading them..."

"Okay...that's good, right?" Gears asked, "why do I hear the beginnings of a 'but' in there?"

"Galvatron," Demona answered, "he's..."

"He's what, babe?"

Demona blinked slowly, optics dim.

"He's moving."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Where? <strong>_He sent her, speaking through his emotions. He already _knew _where, because she had opened up and showed him _where _many times before, enough for him to actually translate the pull in her spark to an actual set of coordinates.

The reason why he kept asking was to keep her aware. She was on the edge, he could feel her spark almost sputtering. His own spark was raging, lost between agony and wrath. _I need to be with her, I need to save her..._

_**Hurry. **_She sent back, brushing against him weakly.

_'Jolt!' _Ghost called over the communications link, _'Pay attention, mech!'_

It was then that he realized that Ratchet and Ironhide were slowing down, allowing the other autobots to drive past. Jolt put on the brakes abruptly, swinging sideways to stop.

_'Primus,' _Ghost grumbled, _'Ratchet! Take them towards the mid-way point!'_

_'Watch yourself, Ghost,' _Ratchet warned, _'we know next to nothing about these mechs.'_

_'I'm aware of that.'_

Jolt could sense the older medic growing tense with annoyance. He let Ratchet take the lead, falling behind Ironhide instead. Reaching deep through their bond, Jolt pulled at Demona carefully, _'Please stay with me.'_

She didn't respond right away. When she did, it was a mere whisper, _'I'm here.'_

He vented softly, processor taking a dark turn.

_You wanted a sparkling,_the thought was almost a snarl, _you wanted a son. Another creation so your family would grow. Now you're loosing the only femme you've ever loved, your own spark. _

_She is offlining. _

_Rapidly. _

Jolt slowed down slightly.

It wasn't the first time he'd thought about their situation. In the beginning, a huge part of his spark had wanted Demona to, as horrible as it sounded, have the sparkling _removed. _But arguing with her about something was about as easy as arguing with a brick wall. He'd never seen such back bone, such hard-headedness, in a femme before and he caught himself over the past years wondering _why _he had ended up with the stubborn one.

_But that's who she is, and you love her for it. _

And that was the truth.

_The sparkling YOU wanted is destroying the femme you need._

"Primus," he said softly outloud. His voice was drowned out by the roar of Ironhide's engine and the sound of tires spinning over gravel.

Yes, he had wanted her to have it aborted. And the second she felt it through the bond, she nearly shut down. His feelings had _hurt _her, more than what Megatron's claws ever could. And he _hated _himself for that...but he couldn't see a future without her. He'd become so dependent on her that _she _had become his spark, and he her armor. Remove the spark from the body, and the mech's life ends.

_'You WILL survive, Jolt,' _Demona abruptly told him, _'for OUR sparklings. My daughter, my son, will NOT be made to bond with any other parent.'_

She then squeezed his spark with surprising strength, to help get her point across.

_'You...' _He shuttered his hidden optics, _'are my spark, my star. Without you, there is NOTHING but black skies.'_

Her voice softened, becoming the weak whisper he had painfully become use to, _'I will always be there to light your way, Jolt, through our sparklings. There will be a part of me in both...whenever you...need...'_

Alarm coursed through him when he felt her falter, spark abruptly buckling. He slammed to a stop, smoke rising from his tires as he swerved sharply and nearly took a nose-dive down a sharp drop-off. Ahead of him, startled, both mechs followed his lead.

And there, for a moment, Jolt felt his spark fail in his chest, tearing massive canyons through him. His frame went rigid, trembling.

Distantly, his processor noted the tell-tale pinch of a deep scan. Ratchet unfolded rapidly with loud curse. He rushed over, "_FRAG! _Now is NOT the time!"

_Where...WHERE! _His processor seemed to shatter, what remained of his spark reaching out, desperately searching for it's match. _Where is she...Demona...where is my..._

"JOLT! Slag, mech! _Speak_!"

Jolt couldn't see anymore. He felt himself falling into gaping wounds in his spark, falling into shock. He couldn't quite think straight anymore. His processor seemed to spin and shutter hopelessly.

_Primus, please...don't take her away from me...not...yet..._

"Ratchet! What's-" Ironhide called, transforming.

"He's going into shock!" Ratchet said, tone on the verge of being panicked. A hand descended and shook his alternate form roughly, trying to jar him back to reality, "JOLT!"

_Dark...dark...dark...dark..._

_So dark..._

He dropped.

"Do something, medic!"

"I can't! Not while he's in this form!"

Then, so faintly that he couldn't see it clearly, a flicker of light. Red light, like the lovely crimson of Demona's spark.

The flicker grew stronger, and his grasping spark finally found purchase. The familiar warmth of her spark filled him, sending the sudden cold and darkness flying. He wrapped himself around her as tightly as possible, absolutely _refusing _to let go.

Slowly, she reached back. He felt her exhausted but hopeful touch brush against him. His optics slowly onlined.

Ratchet was still shaking him, trying to get his attention. Jolt paused to gather his strength, before whispering, "It's okay."

The medic froze, staring down at him. Ironhide demanded, "What the pit just-"

"Demona," Ratchet said quietly.

Jolt hesitated, "She's online." _Barely._

Ratchet seemed to deflate in relief, "Primus, you two are going to be my offlining."

_'Get moving!' _Ghost snapped over the autobot communication link, _'we don't have time for this!'_

Ironhide shot Ratchet a look. The older medic vented heavily, "No, Ironhide, you _may not _knock her upside the helm."

The weapons specialist grumbled, shifting back into his alternate form.

Jolt didn't have the energy or will to smile when Ratchet tacked on, "Not before I do, anyway."

* * *

><p><strong>I got two for you tonight. Hope you enjoy, much love.<strong>

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	93. Chapter 93

**Chapter 93**

"God, help me," Gears breathed, dragging a hand tiredly down her face.

Wheeljack leaned back, carefully studying Demona's exposed spark, "The sparkling is almost ready for his first frame, which means..."

"Demona's weaker." The woman finished, looking up at him.

His turned his optics to her, gaze saddening, "If...it helps any, Gears, it's really quite amazing how far she's held on. Usually, a femme in her condition will offline near the date of the sparkling's conception. She's got an, to borrow a human phrase, 'iron will'."

"Hah!" Rex scoffed, "that girls fuckin' famous for defying death. I'm surprised the grim reaper hasn't given up on her ass yet."

Critter stared in silence. He had moved away when Demona's spark had suddenly flickered out and Wheeljack needed room to work with her. For a terrifying moment there, everyone had thought Demona gave in. At the last moment, she came back. Like always.

He raised a hand to her fingers, touching the warm metal. Completely ignoring the conversation going on around them, he sank deep into his memories, to the very first time he'd met her.

He had been tiny then, six, but he still remembered her clearly.

Demona had been completely out of place. He'd never seen anything like her. And, looking back, he realized that he should have been scared out of his pants. Because she stood eighteen feet tall, and was made of sharp, jagged, lethal points. Her eyes then had been a bright apple red, and cold. Empty. Angry. But for some reason, when he looked up into her optics, he had seen something that _wasn't _evil, or even scary.

And little six-year old Critter had wanted nothing more than to be her friend. He couldn't help but trust her, he couldn't help but love her. She'd been his sister way before they asked her into the family, and she always would be.

"I knew you weren't bad," He told her quietly, running his palm up and down the pad of one of her fingers, "I knew that you were good inside. That you were strong..."

He'd had no fear of her from day one. He knew that he had to touch her, to make sure that she was real and not just some dream. That was why he had completely ignored his mother's warning and his brother's shouts. She wouldn't hurt him.

And she didn't.

"Please don't, sister. I...I still need you."

The texture of old scars and worn alloys scratched his palm lightly. His eyes lifted to Wheeljack when he admitted, "From what I've heard and seen, Demona is a good soldier and friend...and to think that I was so wary of her. I wish that I had taken the time to get to know her."

"The red eyes can be kind of weird," Shark said slowly. She shrugged when Gears shot her a sharp look.

"Don't worry about it, Wheeljack," Gears looked at the mech. Her eyes softened, "trust me, she's suffered a lot worse than a couple of weird stares. Take...Ghost for example. Or Arcee and her sisters."

He blinked slowly, "Arcee and her..."

"Almost shot the shit out of her," Rex shortened, "I wasn't...quite 'around' at the time, but Pockets told me that Gears just about tore the shit out of their pretty little paint jobs."

"What worries me..." Jo started, "is what she meant. About Galvatron."

"'Galvatrons moving'," Wheeljack repeated slowly, "but to where...?"

Gears tapped her fingers along Demona's face plates. She counted all the tiny pieces that made up Demona's optics. She seemed shut off.

"Here."

All eyes and optics turned to Sundance, who was staring intently at her mother, "He's coming here."

"Sundance..." Jo said, standing up, "how do you-"

"Because momma told me," Sundance's bright red optics narrowed, "I can barely hear her...but she knows."

"Frag," Wheeljack hissed, "the others are already too far to turn around and come back. They won't make it."

"Wait, what do you mean they won't make it!" Gears snapped, "they left an hour ago!"

"Galvatron travels by air," Wheeljack informed, "if he left when Demona said so, he's already-"

The earth abruptly shuddered beneath their feet. Wheeljack dropped to a kneel and wrapped a hand protectively over the humans as streaks of dust rained down from the roof of the bunker.

"-Here," The inventor finished with a low growl.

Sundance stood up, uncurling. Her narrowed optics fixed on the entrance, "He came for momma."

"He can't have her," Gears snarled.

Sundance moved forward a step with a deep, rolling growl. Her wings opened slightly, held rigid at her sides. Wheeljack transformed his arm into a big cannon of some kind. He turned to face Jetfire who was slumped over in recharge in the corner of the bunker, "Jetfire! Wake up! We're under attack!"

The old mech jolted, crimson optics onlining slowly.

"Wait," Jo said, sandwiched between her brothers and Pockets, "he can't see us, remember?"

"It doesn't matter," Wheeljack said, "if the bond between him and Demona is still active, then he won't _need _to see." He looked down at them, "our only hope is to stall until the others come back. I've already contacted Ghost."

"With two injured bots and one unconscious?" Shark asked, "seriously, Wheeljack."

The ground shook again, and a wickedly cruel voice sang, "_Where arrrrrrrre you?_"

* * *

><p><strong>Annnnd...that's all you get today! hopefully there'll be more tomorrow!<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	94. Chapter 94

**Chapter 94**

_'Go, Sundance.'_

_'No.'_

It was the first time she'd ever told one of her creators, without joking, no. Her claws stretched out and wrapped around Demona's armor, refusing to leave. Sundance's spark felt tight in her chest, her wings were rigid at her sides, blade-like feathers glinting beneath the artificial light.

Her mother was barely aware, just enough to pull at her spark and tell her to hide, to run. Demona's spark, beneath the pain of shattering to pieces, was ravaged by fear. Sundance could feel it. And she hated it. _You're not supposed to be afraid of anything. _

She was still growing into her second frame.

Her first one had felt way too small, so much so that every motion was strained. But this one was huge, and it had taken her a couple of days to get used to it. It was easier to move now. Her little claws had been replaced by thick, lethal talons. Her body was longer, thinner. Her legs were stronger, and her wings could carry her for hours in the sky.

She was strong enough now. _He's been hurting her ever since I was created. It won't stop. _

Something began to warm, deep in the core of her body, and it wasn't her spark. Demona pulled a little more at her, _'Sundance, no!'_

"Wheeljack!" She called, swinging her head up to look at the mech. He chanced a glance down at her, entire frame rigid.

Once she had his attention, she said, "We gotta move momma. He's coming for _her_, we need to hide her."

Her mimi was helping move her uncles into an area in the far corner, stashing them away in the shadows. Jo somehow had all three of her brothers in her arms and was moving over there as well, Shark right behind her. Jetfire was on his feet now, old red optics narrowed and turned up to look at the ceiling as if he were waiting for it to cave.

Wheeljack knelt beside her and her momma. He sent her a stern look, like he knew what she was thinking, "And _you _need to stay with her. She needs you more than we do."

Sundance remained standing, even when the mech eased his arms under Demona's body and lifted them both into the air. She stayed with her when he settled them back down behind stacks of containers, out of sight. Sundance eyed them carefully for a moment before sitting down. She looked over her shoulder at her mother's face, _'I love you, momma.'_

_'I love you more.'_

Sundance smiled despite the evil standing just outside their door.

* * *

><p>Galvatron chuckled darkly, optics scanning over the earth, "I know you're here somewhere, Demona...no need to hide."<p>

Optimus shifted in his hand, clenching at one of the lethal claws cutting into his armor. He was weaker now, but he was still alert. His blue optics narrowed, glancing towards the hidden bunker.

Wheeljack was a genius, he decided. Besides all the 'oops' experiments and unexplained explosions, the mech did put out plenty of helpful inventions that had, more than once, saved their lives. Optimus was hoping with his entire spark that this was one of those cases.

He knew that he didn't have a hope of being saved, what with the remaining autobots on their way to save him at the decepticon lair and undoubtedly clueless as to where he really was. He knew that Ratchet and Ironhide, even Ghost, wouldn't have left their wounded unguarded. Jolt must have stayed behind to support Demona, or else she would have offlined by now. But who else? Wheeljack, perhaps...

Both mechs were powerful warriors in their own right. But they were not enough. He honestly didn't know what was.

But he had to do something.

Galvatron completely ignored him, sparing him no more time than what it took to tighten his hold on him so he couldn't break free. Galvatron walked forward with slow steps that were surprisingly quiet for a mech his size, "Come out, come out, wherever you are...where are you, my child?"

Optimus' spark eased slightly when Galvatron turned his back on the bunker and moved away.

"Oh, how much pain you're in...it just tears my spark that you suffer this way, Demona. Give me the chance to take it allll away."

Optimus abruptly tensed when he felt Demona brush against spark. Her whisper reached him, so soft he almost missed it, _'Jolt knows...he's bringing them back...'_

_...Jolt? I thought he...then who's here?_

Abruptly, the massive decepticon spun around to face the mountainside, red optics narrowed. He let out a loud, harsh bark of laughter, "How clever!"

_Who's protecting the-_

His thoughts were cut off as the decepticon reshaped a hand into an ugly fusion cannon. A pulse of energy hot enough to melt armor exploded from the barrel, flying towards the bunker.

"No!" Optimus struggled, optics wide.

But the blast was too high, and merely grazed the rounded roof of the bunker. The structure flickered before becoming solid before their optics, the cloaking technology effectively disrupted.

"Don't worry, Optimus. I'll let you see her before I crush her traitorous spark," Galvatron promised with a wicked grin. He started forward.

* * *

><p>"We've been hit!" Wheeljack exclaimed as the entire bunker shuddered and one of the beams above groaned. Somewhere far back in the bunker, Shark shouted, "<strong>NO SHIT<strong>!"

Sundance huddled down on her mother's body, shuttering her optics as more dust rained down in thick streams. Flashes of the attack on base flickered through her processor, and fear, raw and sharp, stabbed through her.

He had destroyed _everything. _He had _torn _everything and _everyone _apart. In reality, there was so few of them left that they barely had enough bots to complete Ghost's mission. He had moved his arm, and everyone had fallen...Ratchet, Optimus, even her daddy.

_"Prime and the Reaper __**combined **__could not touch him. What makes you think that __**we**__ have a chance?" _Her father's broken words echoed through her processor, and she abruptly went rigid. _"There are no heroes, sparkling."_

Slowly, she onlined her optics.

_**There are no heroes. **_

Between Galvatron's smile and his _red_ optics, she caught glimpses of Starscream plunging through the clouds, reaching for her. The feel of his razor-sharp claws raking across her body, tearing through her wings..._I should have offlined. He...had me. _

She had been screaming and crying, desperately trying to get a hold of her mother and father, desperately reaching for them. And her mother had come...she remembered seeing her as she tumbled through the air, a streak of roaring rose red. Hands that gently closed around her body, the complete opposite of Starscream's claws.

The warmth of her momma's spark seconds after.

_**No heroes.**_

Her father, pushing both behind him so Galvatron would have to tear through him first. The way how his optics were hard with determination, the way how his spark was wrapping around theirs, so fiercely protective. He never turned his back on them, he never left them.

A terrible screech filled the bunker as massive claws drug across it's dome-like roof. The hand lifted and then plunged down, easily penetrating metal that would have easily deflected normal enemy fire. Wheeljack swung into action as the hand ripped back, leaving a gaping hole. Dark, cruel laughter echoed all around them.

Jetfire was there, too, as Galvatron peeled the roof back like he was opening a can, red optics glaring down. He didn't even flinch when a shot of energy nailed him in the helm. _Monster._

Jetfire transformed in record time, spiraling up into the air and letting loose a round over Galvatron's shoulder to get his attention.

_You're ALL heroes, dad. _

She turned to look up at the stack of containers forming a wall around herself and her mother. Bright red optics narrowing. She started forward, but a hand rose and landed on her, fingers curling around her body weakly. Sundance's optics widened, focusing on Demona.

Her mother's optics were still offline, but her face plates were twisted into an expression of pain. She breathed, _"Sundance, NO."_

But the dragon wiggled free and shot away, raising her wings slightly to help her glide to the first container. She paused briefly to look down on her creator, _'I can't help you if he takes you from me.' _ She sunk her claws into it's wall and hauled herself up. She kept climbing, blocking out the roar of battle but keeping a close optic on Wheeljack and Jetfire.

They didn't seem to be doing too much damage, but they _were_ doing a good job of making Galvatron mad. The mech's smile was gone now, and he had resorted to trying to slap them out of the air like flies. It was then that she realized he had Optimus in his hand, and that he was _alive. _

Sundance climbed faster.

When she finally reached the very last container, so high in the air that her horns would have been scratching the roof if it hadn't been rolled back. She turned her face to the sky briefly, feeling a soft wind on her feathers. Her wings opened slightly. Her spark squeezed when she saw Starscream coming at her again, but she shoved it all aside.

Instead, she turned to Galvatron, who had yet to see her. Her optics narrowed when he finally hit Jetfire, sending him spiraling out of control through the air. The massive mech growled, "I grow tired of this...Come to me, Demona!"

"I won't let you hurt her anymore," Sundance swore. She brought her body low to the ground and pushed off into the air. Her restored wings stretched out on either side, catching the wind and lifting her higher. She stretched out her talons, and streaked towards Galvatron.

* * *

><p><strong>:) Will have 95 up tonight, too. hope you enjoyed it!<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	95. Chapter 95

**Chapter 95**

Wheeljack watched in horror as Jetfire, spiraling out of control, grew closer and closer to the face of the mountain. He'd never had the chance to get to know Jetfire, but he knew that the old Seeker was good.

_Primus, Ghost. Where the pit are you?_

He turned back to Galvatron when he called for Demona, tone dark. The huge mech bent over the bunker, swinging his claws inside. Wheeljack prepared for another charge, blue optics narrowing when he caught a completely out-of-place streak of rose red as it shot over him. His optics fixed on the new combatant, and widened.

"Is that...Sundance?" _Frag! Jolt's going to SCRAP me!_

He jumped up to try to catch her in his hands, but the little dragon was nearly three times as fast as Laserbeak and literally _blazed _right past. He could feel the heat from her body on his fingers, as if her entire form was on fire. But she wasn't, just flying _really fast._

Galvatron saw her, red optics widening slightly in surprise. The little dragon changed her course with a mere shift of her wings, arcing down towards his face rather than flying clear over his shoulder. The plates of armor around Sundance's neck lifted and began to rotate rapidly, a fierce orange glow pouring from beneath.

Wheeljack watched, amazed, as fire came exploding out of her mouth, scorching Galvatron's face-plates and optics. _Primus, this ones got spark!_

* * *

><p>The warmth in Sundance's core began to burn, but it was a good burn, one that was full of power. It felt as if it were a part of her, like her wings. She'd never felt it before, but Sundance <em>knew <em>it was important.

Something clicked on inside her systems, something her processor registered as 'battle routines'. Her claws curled, glinting sharply under the sun. Her optics narrowed, fixed on Galvatron's face. The armor raised around her neck as she instinctively pulled at the heat inside, drawing it out easily. She felt the burn come rushing up, pouring through the cables in her throat to reach her head. Distantly, she registered the bright yellow-orange glow coming from her own body.

Sundance opened her jaws as wide as she could, and gave the greatest roar she could muster. With it came a searing blast of fire, hungrily spreading over Galvatron's face. The monster bellowed in angry shock and pain, rearing back so fast he almost fell over.

Sundance snapped her jaws shut over the river of fire pouring from her throat, pulling her wings in to take a sharp dive so his claws didn't rip her from the sky. She shot past Optimus just as Galvatron dropped him so he could lift a hand to clench at his face.

The huge mech dropped down and managed to land on his feet, until his bad leg gave out on him. Wheeljack was there, catching him and holding him up.

Sundance pulled up, using her tail to make every turn and spiral smoother. Her battle routines were filing tactics and strategies through her processor, and she understood everyone one of them. Above, Galvatron continued to snarl and clench at his head, flakes of his impossibly thick armor fell down. She took note.

_Your flame hurts him, _a thought whispered, _shells and energon blasts don't hurt. Fire does. _

Sundance bared her fangs, rolling to avoid his claws when he seemed to get a hold on himself. He swung around, all attention on her, and snarled, "_SPARKLING!"_

One of his optics was flickering, still smoking. Gouges were left in his face where the flames had caused the most damage, deep and glass-smooth.

_Melt his armor._

"_Sundance_!" Optimus called tiredly, "Sundance, no!"

But she was already turning around for her second attack.

_Don't let him hurt them anymore!_

Sundance snarled, calling to the fire inside once again.

* * *

><p>Jolt was panicking.<p>

There was no getting around it, no intelligent explanation, no smart excuse. He was, for lack of a better phrase, _freaking the frag out._

Demona was weak. He had focused most of his attention on holding on to her, talking to keep her aware. It was a change, considering the fact that everyone had been trying to get her to rest for weeks. Now he was struggling so hard just to keep her aware.

And, _on top of that, _his _sparkling _was battling _Galvatron. _She was _dead set _on it. No matter what he or Demona did, Sundance would not back down. Her spark was set on putting Galvatron down, she was ready to give up everything for it.

There was so much, so much fear and hurt and desperation, that it felt like his spark was splitting. His processor was frantic, on the verge of glitching. And he was pushing his frame, as hard as he possibly could, to get back in time.

Jolt had already faced Galvatron. He _knew _what that monster was capable of, but he would rather give his spark to Unicron than sit there and do _nothing _as his sparkling and bonded perished. He would return, he would stand, and he would _fight. _

But time was running out.

They were still too far away. It was taking way too long to get there by ground, and none of the surviving autobots, aside those at the bunker, were aerials.

Jolt was leading the team back home. On his left was Sideswipe, on his right Ghost and the sisters. Directly behind him was Jazz. Over the several different roars and snarls of powerful engines, he could hear Ratchet, Ironhide, and the rest in the rear.

So he was the first to see a flash of white on the horizon, a shot of ivory that was cutting across the earth so fast he couldn't identify who it was. Then it was gone.

Heading in the direction of the bunker, and effortlessly trumping them in speed.

He didn't believe it at first, until Sideswipe asked over the autobot comm link, _'What the frag was that?'_

_'I didn't see anything,' _Ironhide grumbled.

_I did, _Jolt thought. He didn't have the will to voice his claim, half afraid he himself was losing his processor. After all, what bot could appear and vanish without a trace like that?

But even that single glimpse was enough to shine a little hope in his spark.

* * *

><p><strong>8D Note to self, don't mess with Sundance's family...<strong>

**I'm so proud of my little Sundance! a hundred something chapters and a story ago she could barely walk! Now she flies and breathes fire! Gosh they grow up so fast...**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	96. Chapter 96

**Chapter 96**

"Primus," Wheeljack muttered, watching as the sparkling darted back and forth, a mere blur to his optics, "I had no idea the sparkling was such a little warrior."

"Me neither," Optimus agreed, blue optics locked on the sparkling. He let Wheeljack help him away since Sundance was doing a slagging good job of keeping Galvatron distracted. Every pass she made at him, she'd let loose with her fire and melt away a layer on his armor. She never stayed long, it was more of a touch-and-go kind of thing. Which proved that the sparkling was incredibly smart.

Jetfire slid down the mountain side in an exhausted heap. He'd transformed before contact and managed to save himself, although the injuries he'd taken were still bad. He groaned when he hit the ground, using his cane to smack at his knee joint until it snapped back into place, "Blasted younglings..."

"Wheeljack-get Sundance _out," _Optimus said, "I will not put the life of a _sparkling _at risk."

"She's doing a better job than we are, blast it," Jetfire pointed out, watching the sparkling carefully as if it was _his _creation darting around the head of a beast, "have _you _been able to cause that much damage?"

"Galvatron is _not _invincible," Optimus shifted topics, "if he can be hurt, he can be destroyed."

"And how do you suggest we do that, Prime?"

"Sundance is flying in repeated patterns," Wheeljack said, raising a hand to point. Jetfire followed his hand and studied the dragon.

He smiled, "That's my little spitfire."

"She's keeping her attacks restricted to Galvatron's spark-burning away his armor in layers," Wheeljack continued, "altering each turn-around enough to avoid his claws. She's using strategy."

"What are we waiting for?" Jetfire exclaimed, "don't let the sparkling have all the glory!" He straightened.

Wheeljack turned to Optimus, "I hate to say it, but you won't do much with that leg of yours. Stay here."

He charged back towards Galvatron. Jetfire transformed and shot away.

* * *

><p>Sundance was acting on pure instinct, flying her best even though she'd neglected her wings for weeks.<p>

Galvatron kept trying to catch her, but she was _way_ too fast. She angled her body to fly around him, so close to his body that her blade-like feathers left shallow scratches in his armor.

Galvatron was beyond annoyed. He was at the point of raging wrath now, face-plates twisted in a snarl and his remaining optic wide and searching for her. Sundance came flying towards his chest again, calling on her fire. She spread her jaws open. A few curling flames escaped before a shot of energon slammed into Megatron's chest, right over the hole she'd been gradually making.

Sundance was forced to curve upward, passing right in front of Galvatron's face. Her optics widened when she saw Jetfire, back in his alternate, blasting towards them. Below, Wheeljack was running forward, laying some seriously heavy fire on the decepticon.

Galvatron shouted, more like _roared, _in anger, "You will ALL die!"

_'Sundance!'_ Optimus called to her over the communications link, _'stand down, sparkling! Return to Demona!'_

Sundance growled low in her throat, but didn't change her course. She rushed at Galvatron instead, going back to his face since Jetfire and Wheeljack were both focused on his chest. She came from behind, slamming down on his helm between his wicked horns. Her claws punched into his helm, and she dropped her head to breathe fire on his face.

Again, Galvatron reared back, both hands flying up to his face. She leaped back to avoid them, letting herself fall. She flipped and spread her wings to catch herself, and ascended. Her gaze focused on Galvatron when he bellowed, "_ENOUGH_!"

He transformed his arm into a god-sized cannon and pointed it at Wheeljack. He snarled, "I'm finished with all of this _play!"_

The inventor took a wide step back, optics widening. The massive barrel lit with a hell-fire glow, gathering heat and energy Sundance could feel in her place high in the sky. She snarled, and dove down, pulling her wings in tight and flattening her plates of armor to cut through the winds.

But then the mech just _stopped. _His remaining optic widened slightly, focusing on something past Wheeljack. Then, slowly, a wicked smile spread across his face.

Sundance turned her head just enough to get a glimpse, and her spark nearly froze in her chest. _No._

She spread her wings, entire body slamming to a stop. She screamed, voice high with fear, "_RUN_!"

* * *

><p>"He's fucking HUGE!" Rex hissed, crouched down. Shark was sitting in front of him, an arm draped over his knee. Rex had hand on her waist, prepared to pull her closer or shove her down in case something came at <em>them.<em>

Rex looked at Gears with panicked brown eyes, "Shit, Gears! No wonder how he pushed our boys aside like they weren't shit!"

"Shut up!" Jo whispered harshly, blue eyes narrowed and staring up, fixed on the god-like being standing over them. She pulled her brothers closer, settled against Pockets who had woken somewhere in this mess.

Gears said nothing. Critter was sandwiched between her and his brother, watching the sky, "Where's Sundance?"

A streak of red answered his question, there and gone again in the blink of an eye.

"Damn she's fast!" Shark said, "why didn't they whip her out earlier?"

"Because she's just a kid!" Gears finally snapped, "she shouldn't even be here! There's no way Demona would have let her do this!"

"Demona's not exactly in top shape over here," Shark shot back, "whether you like it or not, Sundance is doing way better than those robots and their big ass guns!"

They all dropped and covered their ears when Galvatron yelled.

"God I hate days like this," Rex whimpered.

"Rex, SHUT UP!"

Gears squeezed her eyes shut, "Please hurry, Jolt..."

A voice, distant but shrill, screamed, "_RUN!"_

Gears jumped, recognizing the voice instantly. She raised her eyes, heart thundering in her chest, and met Galvatron's stare. The mech had lost an optic thanks to her grand daughter, but his remaining one glowed with mirth when she finally looked at him. His face twisted into a cruel smile. The big ass cannon he'd made out of his arm lifted to point at them, "Hello, _fleshling._"

Gears could do nothing but stare at the glowing energy in the cannon, growing brighter with every passing second. _We can't move, not all of us. Not in time._

He chuckled darkly, "I've been waiting to meet you."

His smile twisted into a snarl when Sundance shot towards him, slamming her entire body into his arm and shifting it just in time. The blast, which would have incinerated all of them, missed them to break through the wall of containers across the bunker and then onward and into the mountainside.

But her eyes never left the sparkling, who, stunned from the impact, fell towards the earth, body limp.

"_Sundance_!" She screamed, "Baby!"

Galvatron laughed, swinging his claws down towards Sundance.

* * *

><p><em>"<strong>Sundance<strong>! Baby!"_

_**Wake up.**_

Sundance was falling, she could distantly feel air rushing all around her, hear someone screaming. But why? She couldn't quite remember.

Her mother was panicking, or as much as she could in her state. She was pulling at Sundance's spark, _**Sundance! Wake up! Now!**_

_Why? _

Her father was joining now, also yanking at her and trying to pull her to awareness with every inch of his strength. It worked, just enough for Sundance to find the energy to online her optics. She wished she hadn't.

Massive claws were slicing towards her, open to close around her body. Raw fear filled her, making her spark spin and squeeze in her chest. She tried to make herself move, to save herself, but her body wasn't quite responding. The farthest she got was a twitch of her tail. She began to panic, instinctively reaching out for her creators.

"Sundance!" Wheeljack rushed towards her, but he was all the way on the other side of the bunker. Optimus was forcing himself to stand. Jetfire was taking a nose-dive to get to her.

She flipped and turned in the air, trying to keep her sights on Galvatron the entire time. He was closer now, only a few feet away...She shuttered her optics tightly and clenched her dentals, waiting for the blow, cold defeat filling her. _They're all too far away..._

"You're mine now, sparkling."

Sundance snarled. She tried to pull at the fire inside, but it was slow to respond. His claws were stretching over her when her spark jumped with sudden recognition, filling with love and hope and security. She sensed the bot before her hand closed around her body and pulled her out of Galvatron's reach.

Sundance onlined her optics to see familiar rose red, and her spark sang.

_Momma!_

* * *

><p><strong>Everythings been moving along so smooth, I was wondering when I'd write another ass-kicking chapter, and by ass I mean MY ass. I've been rewriting this thing since one in the morning.<strong>

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed. **

**Demona and her family belongs to me, Transformers does not.**


	97. Chapter 97

**Chapter 97**

Demona had dug deep, finding a hidden reserve of strength in the core of her broken spark. She had been so sure for a minute that she could do nothing, that she would lose her sparkling, her daughter. But then Sundance had pulled hard at her spark in her panic, and she had seen, if only for a second, what the sparkling was seeing.

And Demona had somehow stood up. She forced away the weakness, the exhaustion. She ignored the pain wracking her body. She looked up to see her sparkling tumbling towards the earth, falling too far, too fast. The claws spread open around her, ready to snap shut like the lethal jaws of a predator.

Demona ran.

Instinct took over. She could think of nothing but getting Sundance _away_. She rerouted some key codes in her transformation routines, half transforming into her aerial to help her when she leaped up into the air, giving her enough boost to snag Sundance out of Galvatron's reach. She cradled the sparkling in her arm, the pain and tension in her spark easing when she felt the dragon nuzzle into her chest. Demona let herself fall back.

Battle routines were on, cycling strategies through her processor. All were almost useless, considering she'd broken off her claw blades earlier. But that was fine, she'd think of something else.

A crippling wave of exhaustion threatened to put her into stasis, but all three, Jolt, Sundance, and Optimus, were holding on to her now that she had awakened. And they were refusing to let her go. They each sent her their strength. Jolt promised, _'Hang on, Demona, we're almost there!'_

_Thank you, Primus, _she thought tiredly. The armor around her wrist lifted and spun, circling her arm until the grooves matched up, but no claws slid out. Instead, she reformed her entire arm from the elbow down into a cannon very much like the one Galvatron sported. She took careful aim, aware of how close she was to the ground now, and fired.

The shot flew towards his face, taking out his other optic. The earth shook when he stepped back with another shout of rage.

Demona turned her body so that her back was towards the ground, arms crossed over her chest to protect her creations. She hit the earth _hard, _half of one of her wings snapping off in the process. She bounced, rolled, bounced, and slammed into the wall of containers that she had been hiding behind before, knocking them all down.

She slid on her side several feet more before she finally stopped. Sundance wiggled beneath her hands, calling, "Mom! Momma! Get up!"

Demona started to push herself up, but her systems, one by one, were shutting down. She managed to sit up half way before she fell again.

_'Momma! Don't-' _Sundance vented, shaking. She kept trying to climb her way out of Demona's hands, but it wasn't going so well.

She froze when Galvatron bellowed, "_DEMONA_!"

The ground shuddered. The mech was walking, coming _towards _them. Sundance struggled harder, "Momma! Wake up! Move! He's coming!"

She pulled hard at Demona's spark, wincing when she felt her mother tense with pain in reaction. "_Wake up_!"

Sundance vented again, leaning back a second to scan her red optics over the fingers wrapped around her. When she found a gap, she stuck her nose in it and wedged it open wider. Outside, Optimus was shouting some order, Wheeljack was firing away and Jetfire roared past overhead.

When she finally managed to get her head out, she took one look and jerked back inside to avoid having it cut off when Wheeljack was thrown like a doll. He flew past so fast there was a sharp wind. Sundance cringed when she heard the '_boom_' of him hitting the rocky wall. After a second, she tried again.

Wheeljack was a crumpled heap on the floor, optics dark. Sundance's spark squeezed, thinking that the impact had offlined him. Her optics turned up when Jetfire passed over them again, trying to distract Galvatron.

The mech was blind now, but it didn't seem to slow him down at all.

Sundance hauled herself out from under Demona's hands, _I have to get back in the air-can't let him-_

Sundance's optics widened when something bone white shoved off the rocky face of the mountain, flipping and twisting through the air elegantly. The bot slammed into Galvatron, sinking blades into the cracks beneath his armor and tearing them out to send out a spray of energon. Galvatron seemed to drop everything else, focusing solely on _her. _

"_Impossible!" _He snarled.

* * *

><p><strong>Shes <em>baaaaaaaack...<em>**

**Sorry for a crappy update. **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Tranformers does not. **


	98. Chapter 98

**Chapter 98**

_Not much time left._

Paradox could feel the joints in her body over heating, her spark doubling it's speed. Soon her body would just fall apart, her spark would die. She _should _have offlined earlier, when Galvatron had crushed her fragile frame in his massive claws. Then again, she'd never been one to just lay down and die. Even before, when she was Angelus, she had manage to avoid death many times over. It was a trait she'd passed down to Demona.

She spun and twisted, dancing over Galvatron's armor. Her processor worked rapidly, cycling through war tactics and different attacks. She didn't think about them, she'd grown far beyond that point. The second an attack crossed through her processor it was put into motion. She took note of still-smoking burns in his armor, deep pits along the plates protecting his spark. Weakened armor.

Someone had been peeling away at his defenses, but none of the autobots here could sustain a flame hot enough to melt armor for _this _long...who could have done it?

A sharp snap filled her audio receptors, painfully loud despite the snarled curses and shouted threats Galvatron was laying on her. Less than second later, Paradox felt one of her knees give. She clenched her dentals, dropping down Galvatron's back. _I have to move, NOW._

Alarms were starting to blare in her processor, alarms she'd held back with a hasty firewall to trick her body into staying online just a little longer. It was a trick she'd learned years ago, in a different life. But the crushed pieces of her frame couldn't be ignored-her armor was falling to pieces with every moment, bouncing down Galvatron's body to hit the earth. Her spark was overworking itself to keep what little energon left inside her cycling through her body. _No time. _

She had mere minutes left.

Paradox pulled out every little trick, every little thing she'd learned in her life as a hunter, managing to avoid his lethal claws and staying in constant motion. She hooked her fingers around a plate of his back armor and swung herself around. In seconds she was back around to his front and rapidly climbing up. Her scarlet optics, exposed because her visor had shattered when he'd dropped her, stayed fix on the bowl-like indent over his chest.

Galvatron was bleeding out energon through the small injuries she'd managed to inflict, but it wasn't enough. Of course, she would have loved to keep slicing and dicing, cutting through cables and main energon lines until he simply _bled _to death. It was an offlining he deserved. But at this rate, she'd fall apart long before he would.

A shot of red to her left drew her attention. She turned her head, and her optics widened.

Little Sundance was slicing through the air like a rose red dagger. Lethal, agile, fast. Her red optics were narrowed and her jaws were spread open, the plates on her neck lifting and spiraling so fast they were a blur. Beneath, a hot orange began to glow like firelight.

Paradox watched as the sparkling fearlessly flew straight at Galvatron, unleashing a volley of flames that slammed into his chest, in the center of the burns, and spread hungrily. Galvatron swept a hand towards the sparkling, but she was too quick and spiraled away. Paradox grinned, pride rising up inside of her. _In her second frame and she's already taking on the leader of the decepticons._

Paradox kept climbing, ignoring the way how something rattled loose on her leg and went tumbling down. Once she reached his chest, she pulled back, white blade glinting in the sunlight, and plunged it down. His armor was still hot and soft from Sundance's flame. Her blade stuck for a brief moment before sinking further. Paradox twisted, widening the hole and breaking through. Immediately, she felt the intense heat of his spark on her armor.

"I will strip you frame clean of armor," Galvatron growled, "you won't escape me this time, Angelus!"

"That's what you said on Cybertron!" Paradox snarled back, "You should have stayed offline, _Megatron_!" She slammed her arm against the side of the hole, making it wide enough to get the other in. Claws closed around her body and squeezed. Her optics dimmed, her frame groaned, her systems screamed. But she would not let go.

She focused solely on getting at his spark, even though he was literally pulling her apart. His hold tightened and he pulled. The screech of tearing alloys filled the air as he literally _stripped_ away her armor. Agony burned through her.

She clenched her dentals, _Hang on...just...long enough...almost there..._

Her optics widened when another snap filled the air. The alerts doubled in intensity, all she could see was red. She watched as one of her arms, buried deep inside his armor, snapped like a twig and went tumbling down inside the hole. Galvatron pulled again and she, unable to hold on with just one hand, came free.

"You're really beginning to bother me, my lovely. You are so much more beautiful when your energon bleeds free from your body..."

Paradox half expected him to lift her to his face or just crush her. Instead, he flung her towards the earth. She shuttered her optics, managing to turn so that her back was towards the ground, although she knew it wouldn't matter. The impact would shatter her already broken body into pieces.

She watched the skies.

Sundance was darting towards Galvatron again. She couldn't see Jetfire-he must have fallen. Wheeljack hadn't risen again, either. There was no one left but a sparkling, and even she was beginning to slow down with exhaustion. _There's no one left._

She shuttered her optics, her fading spark filling with wrath. Angelus was raging, _Do something! _Her processor blinked when her first system shut down.

Paradox snarled, twisting sharply, "Not yet!" Her optics scanned for something to hold on to, anything to slow or stop her fall.

At first, she looked right past them in her haste. She blocked out the roar of their engines...then her processor caught up with her, and she turned her head to stare.

The entire team of able autobots was peeling towards them in one lethal wave.

* * *

><p>A tiny piece of the torment inside Jolt's spark eased when they finally reached the bunker...only to be replaced by an entirely new shock when his optics saw the shape of is sparkling darting back and forth in the air. The shock shifted to pure, unbridled rage when Galvatron swatted her right out of the sky.<p>

He pulled ahead of his comrades, transforming without stopping. He jumped and slid in the dirt, slinging out his whips but holding back the charge. They shot through the air, catching on Sundance's armor and saving her from flying right over the cliff. Sundance squealed in surprise but stilled when she saw him.

He pulled her to his chest, shifting back as the others pushed forward. "What the _pit _are you _doing_!" He snapped.

Sundance just stared at him before dropping her head and curling into his chest. The harsh scolding he was about to lay on her vanished when she whispered, "I thought you'd never come."

"We're here now," Jolt told her, taking time to find Demona and move her a safe distance away, "I need you to stay here and watch over your mother."

He settled her on Demona's chest, lifting his optics from his sparkling to his bonded. He reached forward and pressed a hand carefully to her face. To his surprise, she actually responded by lifting a hand to wrap around his wrist.

"Jolt!" Ironhide shouted. Jolt pulled away, giving his sparkling a stern look, "Stay. Here."

Then he was on his feet and charging into the fray.

* * *

><p>Ratchet was still in his alternate, racing after Paradox. He transformed in the same manner Jolt had, leaping up surprisingly high and catching the femme in his hands.<p>

His spark had shined with a little hope when he saw her, _online, _even if she was literally _in pieces. _Her body, save for her helm, shoulders, and remaining arm, was stripped _bare_ of armor, down to her protoform. He could tell from a glance that she should be offline. Main lines had been sliced, her very frame was crumbled, cracked, and bent. Cut wires poked out between split cables. Her spark chamber was disfigured. _Primus._

Yet she was still online, and _awake. _

Paradox winced, "It's about slagging time, Ratchet. Galvatron is picking your soldiers apart!"

"We came as soon as we could...Optimus!"

"He's here and in one piece, just wounded." Paradox tensed, "you can put me down now, mech."

"How are you even _alive_?" He asked, carefully setting her on her feet. Paradox's knee almost buckled, but she managed to stay standing, "Haven't you heard? Us ex-con femmes are indestructible."

He snorted at her sarcasm.

Paradox turned to Galvatron, "Throw me."

Ratchet gave her a sharp look, "Angelus, what the pit-"

She turned narrowed scarlet optics to him, _"Throw me._"

"No! You don't have the-"

Her blades shot out, she snarled, "Do it, medic!"

Ratchet just stared, "Angelus..."

"I'm offlining, Ratchet. I would rather die _ripping _his spark out than die watching him destroy my comrades!"

He vented heavily, blue optics full of anger and sadness. _She said comrades. She hasn't said that since..._

Slowly, he offered her his hand, asking quietly, "Who are you? Angelus, or Paradox?"

Her optics filled with a certain understanding. She took his hand and said with finality, "I am Angelus."

Ratchet spared her a tired smile before lifting her into his arms, flipping her so that she was laying on her front. He broadened his stance and began to spin at the waist, building up speed until they were a mere blur.

"Take out his spark!" He told her, timing himself accurately before he let her body go. He watched as she shot through the air, remaining arm stretched out in front of her with her blade glinting dangerously. She slammed into the small opening in Galvatron's chest with such a force the massive mech actually stumbled back. He raised his hands to claw at his chest, "_Angelus_!"

* * *

><p><strong>Hmmm...not much to say...<strong>

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	99. Chapter 99

**Chapter 99**

She grinned weakly.

Her dim scarlet optics were locked on his spark. Thanks to Ratchet, she was now _inside _Galvatron's armor, in reach of his spark. _I should have known, he stands around throwing things at anyone that crosses him..._ She chuckled softly, watching as his spark sputtered and pulsed wildly, trying to spin but unable to since her remaining blade was plunged deep into it's core.

"How ironic...you ripped my spark out, I rip yours apart," the words came out weakly. She shuttered her optics when he grabbed at her legs, the only part of her still hanging out. She felt every cable, every wire, every joint, strain when he pulled.

Her legs broke free of her body at the joints, leaving her buried like the head of a tick in his hide. Her systems were collapsing rapidly, one after another. She onlined her optics again, although she couldn't see well, yanked her blade out, and swung it downwards. His entire frame shook as he bellowed. She felt his body fall back, like he was backing away.

Outside, the sounds of war increased.

* * *

><p>Ironhide fell back to his knee, firing away. Blast after blast slammed into Galvatron's armor, but very few of them left so much as a mark. Ghost and Jazz were climbing all over him, attacking the exposed cables between cracks in his armor. Sideswipe and the femmes were weaving between his feet.<p>

Galvatron was clawing at his chest so hard he was leaving gouges in his armor. They had seen Ratchet throw the femme designated Paradox, and they had seen her bury deep inside the mech's chest. _She must have made it, _Jolt though, _he's not even paying attention to us anymore._

The line of autobots pushed forward, following Galvatron when he stumbled back again. His snarls and shouts escalated, and he abruptly swung his arm up and snatched Ghost. Jolt's spark went cold when he fisted his hand around her struggling form and squeezed. Glowing energon erupted through the cracks between his claws, spilling down.

Static filled her end of the communications link.

Galvatron threw her towards them. Sideswipe rolled out of the way before her body slammed into him. Instead, her entire frame shattered on impact like glass, breaking into a thousand pieces. Her spark chamber, crushed flat, bounced and slid. _Primus. _

Ironhide cursed, "Pit-spawned SLAGGER!"

"Is she..." Arcee started to roll forward, but stopped when she saw Ghost's spark chamber. Her face-plates filled with wrath, and she spun around to glare at Galvatron, who was desperately pulling at his chest plates. Jazz had dropped down and was standing among them, "This glitch is way too fraggin' tall!"

"Then by all means," Chromia said, "let's cut him down to size."

Jolt never took his gaze from Galvatron, "Wait." All optics turned to him.

Galvatron was moving closer and closer to the drop off, a drop off he knew no mech, even Galvatron, could survive. His whips cracked with blue electricity, "Our only hope is to drive him over the edge! Paradox has penetrated his spark, but she may be too weak finish him."

"But if we shove him off," Sideswipe started, "what will happen to her?"

Ratchet stepped forward with a soft vent, "She's willing to give up her life to offline him...she knew what would happen before she insisted on being thrown."

"For a decepticon, she's got an honorable spark," Ironhide said.

"Yes...she does," Ratchet agreed softly.

"Then it's settled," Jazz pushed them back on track, "the big slagger takes a nose dive over the cliff."

Jolt nodded. Ironhide spun the barrels of one of his cannons, turning towards Galvatron. The others followed his example.

* * *

><p>The heat of his spark was beginning to melt her blade, so she sheathed it and reached out with her hand instead. Her fingers dug deep inside to grip the solid core. His entire frame jerked. <em>I'm going to the pit and I'm taking you with me, love, <em>she thought tiredly. She squeezed, and he _dropped. _She could feel her spark slowing down. Her processor was going numb. Her optics were offline now, so she was blind.

She gathered whatever was left of her energy, channeled it into her arm, and pulled. The center of his spark caved moments later, crushing in her hand. A sharp mechanical whine echoed through his body. She was still grinning when her spark went dark in her chest.

* * *

><p>Galvatron's entire body shuddered and jerked. He fell to a knee. He stopped clawing and grasping, trembling claws spread open. His dark optics were wide.<p>

Ironhide slammed into him first. The decepticon slid back a few feet. Ratchet and Jolt were next while the weapons specialist fell back to fire. Galvatron roared, swiping at him. His movements were off, though, slow and easily missing them. Jazz ran up Ironhide's back and twisted, planting a well aimed kick on the con's head that ended up toppling him over the edge.

Galvatron made an attempt to save himself, but he was too weak to hold on and down he went, tumbling and snarling. Jolt watched until his massive frame vanished in the shadows. Ratchet knelt beside him, picking up a bone white blade that must have snapped off some time during the battle.

"It's over," Jolt said quietly.

"What about the other 'cons?" Someone asked.

"For now they'll be lost without a leader," Ratchet answered, sounding exhausted, "we'll cross that bridge when we get to it-"

"_Ratchet_!"

They all straightened at the sound of their Prime's voice. Jolt turned to see what was wrong when his spark clenched in his chest.

Optimus was leaning over Demona. Jolt felt it too, and his spark screamed in fear and pain. He whispered out loud, "Her spark..."

"It's going out!" Optimus finished.

* * *

><p><strong>0.0 One thing after another...<strong>

**Rest in peace, Paradox. You were a badass from day one and officially one of my favorite characters...I'm going to miss the hell out of writing you into these stories.**

**Ghost...you had a super crappy history so it's no wonder WHY you were like that...So rest in peace to you, too.  
>You're still a bitch, though. <strong>

**Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**

**Demona and her family, Ghost, and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	100. Chapter 100

**Chapter 100**

Both medics were there in the blink of an optic.

Jolt slid to her side, dropping down to his knees. Ratchet was firing off orders before he even reached them, "Jolt! Optimus! Talk to her, use the bond, keep her aware!"

He rushed to get her chest plates open, "Primus...it _would _be now of all fragging times!"

Her chest opened for them to see her spark. Ratchet vented sharply, "She's on the verge of offlining...if she has any chance of making it through this, the sparkling must come out _now_!"

"What the pit do you do with a newborn spark when you don't have a body to put it in?" Sideswipe asked, raising an optic ridge.

The medic froze, raising his optics to his student.

"It was in our quarters," Jolt said quietly, optics distant, "I took it in there to finish attaching the armor..."

"FRAG!"

Jolt pressed his hands to Demona's face, focusing completely on her. He reached through the bond to her. He pulled gently, and waited for her to respond. But she felt so distant...there wasn't so much as a whisper on her end. It was as if she wasn't even there anymore.

"Ratchet..." He whispered, not caring how weak he sounded. He looked up at his mentor, "Ratchet, what do I do? She's not..."

"Keep trying," Ratchet answered. He turned to Sideswipe, "You. Get back to base and try to find the sparkling frame-there's a very _small _chance that it may have made it. Go now, and hurry."

Without another word, the mech folded down into his alternate and peeled away. Ratchet turned back to Demona, "I'm going to try to pull her from stasis...be prepared to support her, she's going to need it."

He slipped a hand beneath her head, a look of concentration filling his face. Jolt took one of Demona's hands, _Primus, please don't take her away..._

"Come on, youngling," Ratchet coaxed, "online. Wake up for me."

Her body abruptly jerked, chest rising like she was taking a deep breath. Jolt squeezed her fingers gently, catching the very faint flare of light in her once bright red spark. Her optics lit.

"That's it..." Ratchet smiled tiredly at her.

"Why..." Demona shuttered her optics, "why won't you let me rest?"

"You've been resting for a really long time, mom," Sundance said quietly, "We want you to wake up now. Please stay awake."

"Don't you want to see him?" Jolt tried, "It's time, Demona."

Her gaze shifted in his direction, but didn't focus on him. She didn't say anything, only stared.

Ratchet monitored her spark carefully, glancing away only when he heard the humans, remarkably all in one piece, make their way over.

Gears ignored the mechs. She made her way to Demona and draped the top half of her body over Demona's cheek, "Hey, Dem, baby."

Critter leaned up as far as he could beside his mother.

Jolt watched as a little more life came into his mate's optics. They were tired but warm. When she spoke again, her voice was a little stronger. Ratchet froze when she asked, "Where's...where is Paradox?"

Quiet answered her, and the warmth left her, filling with confusion instead. She looked at Optimus, "Where...?"

Ratchet was about to answer when Rex came up, took a look at the sparkling, and said, "Damn that baby's...purple? What _the hell_...Is he suffocating or something? Demi, what are you _doing-_"

Ratchet pressed a hand to his face, "Primus..."

Gears rolled her eyes.

* * *

><p>One of the first things Rex had learned about Gears was that she had a built in radar when it came to her offspring, meaty and robotic alike.<p>

That woman was on their ass when something went wrong faster than Batman responded to the bat signal. He knew something was up the second she stood up, eyes searching. Obediently, everyone that could besides Jo and her brothers, stood up and followed her when she started walking off.

The woman led them back to the bots. Rex fought back the urge to yell, 'It's about DAMN TIME!' Instead, he stayed right beside Gears who had, by then, pin pointed Demona's location and started that way.

He knew something was wrong the moment he spotted Ratchet, Jolt, and Optimus leaning down over her with worried faces. Demona was awake, but she looked like she wasn't all there.

Gears all but ran over there, draping herself over Demona's face. Critter followed her example. Rex walked over to Demona's body and stood up on his toes to see. He blinked when he saw the purple star-like light nestled against Demona's spark.

"Damn that baby's...purple? What _the hell_...Is he suffocating or something? Demi, what are you _doing-_" He cut her a sharp look.

"Primus..." Ratchet groaned.

"_Rex, _what color does blue and red make?" Critter asked, raising a brow.

He blinked at him before he made a face, "Yeah, that's...awkward."

"What's wrong with her?" Gears asked.

"The sparkling is ready to be moved to it's first frame," Ratchet answered. He looked above them when Sideswipe came snarling back, sending up a spray of dirt behind him. The front-liner slid to the side and transformed before his wheels even stopped spinning.

Rex gave them all a crazy look, "Where the hell are you going to get one of those?"

"Did you find it?" Jolt asked, completely ignoring her. In answer, Sideswipe cracked open some of his armor and whipped out a tiny little metal form. Shark jumped slightly, "_Damn_! What else you got in there?"

Sideswipe grinned at them, again ignoring them, "Looks like our day is looking up. It's just got some scratches-the shelf fell over and kept it from being crushed flat."

He handed it over to Jolt. Ratchet finally addressed the humans, "It'd be wise if you and your family moved back, Gears. Anything could happen."

Gears moved back, taking Critter with her. Rex was going to stay where he was until Shark grabbed his arm and pulled him away. Both medics leaned over Demona. Optimus and Sideswipe shifted back.

They stood back in tense silence.

* * *

><p>"Have you birthed a sparkling in the middle of a war zone before?" Jolt asked, watching carefully as Ratchet pushed Demona's chest plates open further so he could easily get to the sparkling.<p>

"Once," Ratchet answered, "when the decepticons raided Iacon. I found a femme that was on the verge of offlining. She told me where the sparkling's frame was and asked me to save it."

"And...?"

"The sparkling made it. We were forced to take him in because both of his creators had offlined in battle."

Jolt blinked, "You mean Bumblebee."

"Yes."

Demona's frame went rigid, drawing the mech's attention. Jolt draped the tiny sparkling frame over his leg and reached down to take her hand. She squeezed his fingers tightly. He reached through the bond and brushed against her spark, trying to ease her pain.

The moment Ratchet dipped his fingers inside to retrieve the sparkling, he felt Demona's spark begin to fade again. A wave of sudden exhaustion wracked through his body in response, spark reacting to her's and desperately clinging to her. Optimus tensed across from them.

"Don't let her go!" Ratchet ordered, breaking through the transparent, skin like casing that had grown over the sparkling. He coaxed the small spark into his palm, lifting it carefully but quickly.

Jolt raised the frame to him, easing it's chest open. Very gently, Ratchet placed the tiny spark inside, transforming his hand into a set of tools to check the main energon lines. Jolt watched as the little body jerked slightly. The crying started immediately-shrill whines and whirs that were enough to put out any mech's audio receptors. A thick wave of relief washed over Jolt, blue optics softening. The sparkling's optics blinked online, wide and bright.

He could do nothing but stare at their creation.

Sundance climbed into his lap, stretching up to see. The sparkling quieted, staring back at Jolt. Then he started chattering, reaching towards his face. Sundance chattered back in the same manner, reverting back to her first way of communicating. "He knows who you are, daddy," she smiled, "he likes your armor."

He felt a very light, but insistent, pull on his spark. He pulled back, tensing slightly when an entirely new bond tore open between them.

Through it and the new emotions from the sparkling, he sensed Demona brush against his spark. Jolt looked down at her.

* * *

><p>Demona smiled tiredly when she heard the spark-wrenching cries of their creation. <em>He's online...I saved him.<em>

She tried to stay online, she tried to fight the heavy exhaustion rolling through her, but it was an unstoppable force. She couldn't even slow it down. Primus, she was just so _tired..._

She reached through to Jolt in an attempt to let him know that she was going to recharge now, since the sparkling was online and safe. Her optics were already offline when he reached back, filling her with a sense of awe and love. He was speaking to her, trying to get her attention, but she just couldn't wake up. _Every ones okay...Prime is back...it's okay now..._

But still, the thought nagged at her, through the peace from knowing that her sparkling was online and so was her family. _Not all of it._

_Where is she?_

Her spark wasn't in so much pain any more. If anything, it was almost numb. But it squeezed with cold shock when the thoughts kept running through her processor, even as everything else slowed down.

_Where is Paradox?_

* * *

><p><strong>Wow. 100 chapters and 250 reviews. O.O (passes out cookies) This is an accomplishment! One that would have been impossible without my loyal, AWESOME readers.<strong>

**Anyway, real quick, I don't honestly know how Bumblebee or most of them came around, but I figured that he'd have some story similar to that. **

**I hope you enjoyed...**

**Demona's going to be heart broken when she finds out. :/**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	101. Chapter 101

**Chapter 101**

"I thought I'd never see this place again," Gears said quietly, standing before the dusty hangars of Diego Garcia.

"Just what is it?" Shark asked, "It looks...military."

"Before the autobots were allowed to build their own base, they were paired with the military and stationed here," Pockets answered, leaning back in his wheelchair. He looked exhausted, but the color was returning to his face and his green eyes were clear. Jo was standing beside him, with Carter hanging on her back like a monkey.

"We don't have a choice but to move back here," Ratchet said simply, "we're fortunate this place is even still standing."

"We've been _real _fortunate," Jo said, "considering all that's happened recently."

The medic said nothing else. He started walking towards the main building.

Gears turned around and looked up when someone stopped behind them. She smiled when Jolt knelt and offered her her newest grandbaby. She opened up her arms and took Flashback, who clicked and whirred cheerfully. "Hi, baby, how are you today?"

He reached up and pressed tiny hands very carefully to her face. She grinned, turning her face into his palm and kissing it. She raised her eyes to Jolt, who was watching quietly. She asked, "How is she?"

"Still in stasis," Jolt answered, "no sign of recovery or onlining..."

The grin faded. Gears brought the baby close to her body, wrapping him up in both arms. Her heart squeezed.

It had been a few days since Galvatron had taken a permanent nose dive off the cliff, and Demona hadn't shown signs of waking up since. She was deep in stasis, stashed away in one of the cargo ships Lennox had managed to get for them. Until Ratchet got the med bay up and running again, anyway.

"Sundance?" Pockets asked.

Jolt shook his head, "She hasn't left her side. I only came down to help Ratchet so we could get her proper care faster."

"Is there anything we can do?"

"Just...watch him for me," Jolt answered.

Gears reached up and patted his hand, "Alright, sweetie. You better head over to the med bay."

He started to stand, but paused and turned back to look at them with sad optics, "Thank you."

"For?"

"For not giving up on her."

Gears blinked, and was about to ask when he added, "I...heard Wheeljack and Ratchet talking. Wheeljack doesn't think she'll online...neither does Arcee, or Sideswipe..."

"And what do you think?"

He paused, as if he was thinking deeply about the question. When he answered, his gaze was back on Flashback, "One of the things that drew me to her was her strength. It wasn't...the fact that she could hold her own in battle, more of the way how she treated you. I knew she was a decepticon at one point, so I knew that her life had been twisted and painful...but she still had it in her to love unconditionally, even if it was for someone so small and fragile. She is strong at spark, and I love her for it." His optics lifted to Gears, "She's not ready to leave any of us behind...there is nothing that she treasures more than her family, and she will always find her way back to us...somehow."

Gears smiled softly, "You're a good guy, Jolt. I'm proud to have you as my son-in-law."

He lingered a moment longer before he stood up and started to walk towards the main building. Rex turned around when he was out of earshot and raised an eyebrow at her, "Is it true you think he's got a nice ass?"

"Hell yes! Look at that thing," Gears said. She grinned when she caught Shark shamelessly admiring.

"_Damn_," Was all Shark said. Rex shot her an evil-eye look and Gears cackled.

* * *

><p>"Optimus," Will Lennox greeted.<p>

The big bot was back on his feet. He turned to look at the human soldier that had helped them over the past six years, feeling a sense of camaraderie with the human, small but powerful in his own way.

"Will," Optimus nodded, "It's good to see you again."

"You too, I just wish it was under better circumstances," Will straightened, "did Ironhide come back with Mega-_Galvatron's_ body?"

"What was left of it," Optimus vented softly, "the impact was hard enough to shatter even Galvatron's frame to pieces. We didn't find everything, but we're still searching."

"What about the guy that tore out his spark?"

Optimus raised his optics to the sky, "A femme gave her life to offline Galvatron."

Will fell silent, before coaxing, "You sound like you were close to her."

"Long ago, when we were young, she was a close friend. One of the few that I had known well before I became a Prime. I thought we had lost her for a long time...only to find her and lose her again."

"I'm sorry. I've lost good friends and comrades...it's never easy."

Optimus pushed them back on topic, "We didn't find her frame, only a few pieces of her armor that had gotten lodged in Galvatron's body."

"And Demona?"

"In stasis. She's still online, just...unresponsive. Ratchet and Jolt have been working to save her. Her sparkling survived, and is in good health."

The smaller of the two grinned, "I heard about him. What's his name?"

"Flashback."

Will nodded, "I hate to cut our visit short, Optimus, but I have to go back and report. I'll be back to help with what I can, when I can."

"Thank you, Will."

Will smiled at him, "It's not much...but it feels good to be back.

* * *

><p><strong>Some fun stuff in there with Rex and them...<strong>

**I'm on a roll, may or may not crank out 102 tonight. **

**Much love!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	102. Chapter 102

**Chapter 102**

_**I knew you would be different.**_

Demona stood in the land of darkness, optics shuttered because she wasn't sure she wanted to see her surroundings in daylight. The last time she had come here hadn't been a good experience, considering Megatron had _still _found a way to torment her, even from his grave.

She nearly jumped when something gently brushed against her shoulder.

_**I told him you would be, I believed the second you first moved against my spark.**_

"Who are you?" Demona asked. This...presence was familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, like the presence of a close friend from the past when you cross paths again years later. It wasn't so much as a voice as a thought that echoed around her, soft and almost lovely. She'd never heard such a peaceful sound, and for the moment, all the pain and fear seemed to seep away.

_**I was on the verge of giving up, on the very edge of self-destruction...when you touched my spark. I felt you...whisper to me...**_

"...Paradox?" Demona whispered. Part of her wanted to look, but she was afraid to.

_**Look and see, creation.**_

Slowly, Demona obeyed. Her optics widened when they landed on smooth plates of rose red instead of sharp plates of bone-white. This femme was the same size as Paradox, but it was as if she was from a completely different world. Her armor held no distinguishing features of an earth vehicle, rather the complex design of a cybertronian one. This femme was _before _Galvatron, before Megatron crash landed on earth. _Before autobots, before decepticons..._

Blades of dark, shining red rose from her back in layers like splayed wings. She held herself with a certain grace, one Demona had never seen before. And her optics were _deep _and _blue. _Like every shade and depth of the color was there, in her optics. They held great wisdom, but also an ancient sadness.

Demona knew _exactly _who it was. She stared, processor struggling to understand. _How can this...what?_

_"Angelus."_

Slowly, the femme smiled. _**You remember me.**_

"But...how?"

_**I had to see you...you've grown. So much.**_

"Where were you?"

The smile turned to sad. She offered her hand, _**Come walk with me, Demona.**_

Demona stared for a moment before accepting. Angelus led her away and into the sunlight. She said softly, _**I used to dream of walking with you on Cybertron before war bled it dry. I used to dream of raising my sparkling in peace. Before Megatron turned...**_

"You loved him."

_**More than anything. I was assigned to the mines after I graduated from being Ratchet's apprentice. I met him there...one of the tunnels had collapsed. He was one of the biggest mechs there, and he carried out as many injured as he possibly could. He wouldn't leave their side until he knew they would survive...He was so strong and kind, handsome, and I fell for him...but...**_Her tone dropped to a soft whisper, _**That was a long time ago. **_

"What happened to him?"

_**He always had a darkness inside him. In the end, it consumed him. **_

Demona stopped walking, optics turning to her, "The same darkness that's inside me."

_**Yes. **_She stared back, _**You have already seen what it's capable of when fed.**_

"My life is built on wrath, isn't it?" Demona asked quietly, "Megatron...you..."

_**Jolt? Your sparklings? **_Angelus argued quietly, _**they have brought you nothing but peace. You are not Megatron, and you are not me, or Paradox. What sets you apart from us is that you have fell into this darkness, but you found your way back out. **_

"It's still there...waiting to take control again," Demona raised a hand to her spark. She looked back to Angelus, "How did you fight it?"

Angelus' optics softened, losing the sadness that had filled them. She answered, _**I fought it for you. But when Megatron took you away from me, threatening to crush your frame...I've never felt such a darkness. It pulled me from offlining, shattering my memories and my spark...Paradox was born.**_

"You're offline, aren't you?"

Silence answered her question. Demona's spark clenched painfully. She suddenly couldn't feel her legs so she sank down into a kneel. Her optics stayed fixed on the ground, "He's taken you from me twice now."

_**Optimus once said when the war began that 'fate rarely calls upon us at a time of our choosing'...it was our time, Demona. In the end, we were not past and present, Angelus or Paradox, but one, with one faction, one creation, and one hope. **_

She crouched beside her and stared at the horizon, _**I will never leave you, I never have, since the day of your creation. Neither will Paradox. **_

Demona tensed when Angelus pressed a hand to her face. She found herself staring into the most vivid pair of optics she'd ever seen, _**I need you to live, Demona. For the sake of your family, your sparklings...wake up, and live. **_

Peaceful, calm, strength filled her from the contact, pooling through her. Once it reached her spark, it began to burn. An intense, sharp, breath-taking burn that squeezed her spark. She gasped, "What are you-"

_**Tell Ratchet and Optimus that I am at peace here, with my family...I hope to see you again. Until all are one, creation.**_

The presence of Angelus faded, drifting away. Demona reached for her as her red armor shattered into pieces like glass. Beneath a light shined, growing so bright she had to turn away.

Gravity pulled down at Demona's body. The light died away. A dull ache spread in her chest instead of the sheer, shattering pain she'd come to expect. Her optics remained offline as her systems started running. The steady beat of a spark-monitoring system echoed in her audio receptors. She listened to it for a moment longer before onlining her optics and looking around the room with new clarity.

Ratchet was stretched out on a berth in the back corner. Jolt was laying on his side on one not far from her's. Each one of the berths was holding someone. Bumblebee was on one, Sunstreaker on another. The chevy twins were there, too.

She studied them for a moment, spark squeezing with fear inside her chest. Relief flooded her when she realized that the were all online, just deep in recharge.

Something shifted against her body and she turned her head to find Sundance curled protectively around a tiny sparkling, both were resting. She watched them for a moment, wondering if she had ever seen something so beautiful.

Then, shocking her, tiny optics blinked on, widening when they saw her staring. The sparkling stared back in quiet awe before he whirred and chattered at her. Someone began to tug at her spark repeatedly, determined to get her attention. She reacted, pulling back. The sparklings optics widened further before turning into half circles as a big, silly smile pulled at his face. He chattered again, sending her thick waves of unconditional love and warmth. _**I found you**_, they said.

* * *

><p><strong>:3 <strong>

**Hope you enjoyed...I'll try to have one more up tonight.**

**Much love!**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	103. Chapter 103

**Chapter 103**

"Daddy!"

Jolt tensed, feeling claws pulling at his armor. He could feel Sundance pulling at his spark, trying to get his attention. _Primus. _This sparkling-raising business was going to be hard if he couldn't get a decent recharge now and then.

"_Daddy_!" The dragon vented sharply above him, "wake up!"

He onlined his optics, blinking at her tiredly. "Sundance...? What..."

Sundance sat down on his chest, scowling, "We would be doomed if you were the only bot left in a war, because a bomb couldn't wake you up, dad!"

He raised a hand to drag down his face plates, "What's wrong?"

"Mom's not here."

Jolt froze.

"Flashback isn't either."

"SLAG!" He snapped, pushing himself up quickly. Sundance yelped and locked down on his chest so she wouldn't go tumbling off. His outburst startled Ratchet awake.

The older medic immediately started up, "Jolt, WHAT in the name of Primus-"

"Demona and the sparkling are gone!" Jolt said, getting to his feet.

"Would you _slow down_!" Sundance shouted above them, "calm down, daddy!"

He stopped and lifted her to his face. Sundance tilted her head, tone softening, "Don't you feel it?"

Jolt hesitated, giving time for his processor to catch up. Something_ was_ different, he realized. He reached through his bond with his mate, and his optics widened.

Demona was _online. _Online and _aware_. Not only that, but her spark was...

"Primus," He whispered.

Sundance stretched out her neck to touch her nose to his face, "She's okay, daddy. Mommas okay...she's not even hurting anymore."

Jolt walked towards the med bay doors, stepping into the hall. He tugged gently at Demona's spark. She tugged back almost instantly, _'Good morning, Jolt.'_

Sundance slipped out of his hand and curled around his shoulders. It took a minute for him to answer, still trying to get over his shock, _'Demona...you're...awake?'_

He made his way outside. He transformed down into his alternate, spark aching to find her. Sundance curled up in the back seat, on the very verge of being too big to. Jolt peeled away, sending up a spray of sand behind him.

* * *

><p>Demona watched over Flashback carefully, soft red optics never leaving his tiny body as he laid on his belly and played in the sand, chirping and chattering excitedly. She ran a finger down his back and he grabbed at it, whistling.<p>

"You have your mech creator's optics," Demona said softly, "I was hoping you would."

Flashback smiled up at her, then whistled again when the sound of an engine reached them. Demona's spark warmed, recognizing Jolt. He slowed to a stop and simply idled for a moment. She felt his optics on her for a while before he transformed, blue armor rearranging.

Sundance dropped to the ground and ran towards her. Demona scooped her up and brought her close to her body. Jolt stared, like he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. Finally, he knelt beside her, "Demona, how..."

He blinked when her optics saddened, turning to the water. This was the same place he had asked her to be his bonded, and it's beauty hadn't faded. She said softly, "I saw her."

Jolt slipped an arm around her and coaxed her towards him until she was leaning against him. Sundance nosed her mother's face before dropping down to play with Flashback. Jolt turned his face into Demona's neck, realizing just how much he had missed her this past week. "Who?"

"My...mother. My real one." _Not Paradox...Angelus._

He tensed slightly, "I thought..."

"She offlined, but she came to see me in my dreams, told me that I needed to wake up. So I did, and I was...healed."

He vented softly, "I swear, ever since you came into my life things have been flipped."

She smiled.

"Don't ever do that to me again," He whispered, "I thought I lost you."

She snorted, "It was _your_ fault, Jolt. If you hadn't gotten yourself injured, I wouldn't have-"

His arms tightened around her, finger tips slipping under a piece of her armor to brush sensitive cables. She fought the urge to smack him for doing it in front of the sparklings, but neither of them were watching. Instead she elbowed him lightly.

She felt him smile through the bond.

* * *

><p><strong>Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.<strong>


	104. Chapter 104

**Chapter 104**

Optimus counted in his head slowly, naming all the bots that had fallen against Galvatron. _Ghost...Paradox..._

_Angelus..._

He bowed his head, pressing his hand to his face. Losing soldiers and comrades was, as Will put it, never easy. But it had happened so often that he had learned to become numb to it all. Still...he just couldn't completely let it go. Thank Primus that Galvatron didn't last as long as Megatron did, but he had lingered long enough to put a dent in the autobot forces and offline some of his closest friends.

An earlier conversation between Rex, Ghost, Gears, and himself repeated in his processor;

_Rex joined them, hand raised to press against his side. He squinted up at Optimus, "When is this shit supposed to end? This war has been going on for fucking centuries. Megatron has died twice. People are dying, everyones getting hurt-"_

_"It's called war," a femme started, turning frozen blue optics to them. Gears looked towards her and tensed._

_Optimus narrowed his optics and also looked to her, "Ghost-"_

_"And it will never end," She continued, completely ignoring the warning in his voice, "more than you can possibly imagine have perished since the beginning, and more will follow. The darkness fell on your planet. You will never see the light of peace again."_

"Prime?"

He nearly jumped out of his chair, straightening to face the bot standing in the doorway. His optics widened, "Demona."

She stepped inside and he stood up a little too quickly, nearly tripping over himself. He stared at her, "It's true, then...your spark is...?"

"Yes," She raised Flashback, changing subjects on him, "have you had the chance to hold him yet?"

Optimus blinked, staring at the tiny sparkling. He had seen Flashback, but the sparkling had always been in someone's hands. Jolt, Gears, Pockets, Jo, even Rex.

His optics softened when the little mech tilted his head then whistled at him, reaching with tiny hands. Optimus took him carefully, "He looks just like Jolt."

Demona smiled, "He does."

But there was Demona in the sparkling too, the shape of his mouth and the gentleness in his optics. Optimus chuckled when the sparkling fell still, optics round and wide, locked on his face.

"Jolt told me what happened," She started quietly, startling him, "about Paradox."

Optimus stilled.

"Optimus, Angelus is my creator."

His processor stuttered. All he could do was stare at her.

"I've known about Paradox and Angelus since you destroyed the sun-eater."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't know how," Demona answered. She met his optics, "Angelus saved my life. I don't know _how_, but she was there. Rose red, armored wings, blue optics...She wanted me to tell you something."

Flashback smacked his hands on Optimus' fingers, chattering happily at the sounds. Optimus waited.

"She's with her family again, she found her peace."

Optimus vented softly, "I've known Angelus since the week I was transferred to my third frame...when she went missing, we all thought that Megatron had offlined her...but if she is your femme creator, then her spark was ripped out the day of your birth."

"Wrath saved her, Prime. When Megatron threatened to destroy me, she was consumed by it...and that was how she survived long enough for decepticons to rebuild her frame...and then she became Paradox."

A tense quiet fell over them. Optimus looked down at the sparkling when he yawned, stretching his arms out. He smiled tiredly, "I think he's ready for recharge."

"He recharges more than Jolt," Demona grumbled, taking the sparkling back when offered, "I didn't think such a thing was possible."

He chuckled, watching as she turned to leave. She paused near the doorway, turning halfway to look back at him, "Optimus, darkness can never be without light. This war _will _end, it has to. So don't give up hope."

He stared at her, before smiling, "Thank you, Demona."

Then she left, her sparkling's chattering fading with distance. He blinked when another voice filled it's place, "Misses James! Please-you can't just walk around yelling at our giant robot friends! Especially not Big Bot!"

Seconds later Gears was marching into his old office, Rex behind her. She looked up at him, "Optimus, we need to talk!"

_This...doesn't sound good. _He walked around his desk and knelt before them, "What can I do for you, Ariel?"

"I want Demona and the sparklings to stay _home, _with _us."_

Again, he blinked.

Gears kept going, throwing her hands up in the air, "Every time you pull her away for some mission or autobot pickup, she ends up in Ratchets freaking med bay, half dead! I am NOT putting my kids OR my grandkids at risk anymore! They're coming home, and I'll argue with your ass all slaggin' day if I have to!"

_She just said slagging, _he noted with amusement.

Gears went on without pause, pacing in circles now and getting all worked up, "I am so SICK of sitting for hours on end, wondering if my babies were going to be okay-this shit never happened until we started hanging out with your big ass-don't get me wrong, Optimus, we love the hell outta you and the other bots, but _Primus-_" _Primus, too? They __**have**__ been spending too much time here. _"-it's like one catastrophe after another! Demona and Jolt have sparklings now, they don't need to be in the middle of this raging storm of evil _CRAP _that never lets up! They need to be _apart _from all of this-have you _seen_ what happens to kids that are raised in the middle of chaos? They get tattoos and piercings and they're uncontrollable-"

"Gears-" Rex tried, sighing when she kept at it.

"-and they get in gangs and stir up all kinds of trouble and they end up driving their parents to the point of madness! It's like a damn domino effect and there's no stopping it once it's started! So they're coming home, with me! And dammit, that's where they're going to stay!"

"I completely agree," Optimus said when she stopped to breathe.

She kept pacing, like she didn't even hear him, "Even Ratchet says that she needs to get away for a while to rest her spark, and dammit, if you think other wise I'll-" She froze, then spun around to squint at him, "Come again?"

"I agree," he repeated, "Flashback and Sundance need their creators more than we do."

"Huh," Gears raised a hand to scratch the back of her head, "that was easy."

Rex shot her a crazy look, "Damn, misses James! I thought you were gonna start burnin' holes in the floor!"

"I've got an hours worth of nonsense in here to argue with," Gears said, tapping her temple with a finger, "you sure you don't want to see all the hard work I put into wearing you down into submission?"

Optimus laughed. It was the first good laugh he'd had in a while, and it completely shocked the two humans into still silence. Slowly, Gears smiled.

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><p><strong>Okay...we've probably got one more chapter left then the sneak peak of the next installment. :D <strong>

**Hope you enjoyed...I love it when Gears starts up with her rants.**

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not.**


	105. Chapter 105

**Chapter 105**

Pockets walked out into the sunlight, pausing when he spotted Rex spread out in his own personal lawn chair with a glass of ice cold tea in one hand and a pair of ridiculously big aviator shades on his face. His high school friend had a big frown slapped on his face. Pockets raised an eyebrow, "Aren't you supposed to be at mom's shop?"

Slowly, Rex raised his glass, stuck the straw in his mouth, and slurped as loud as he could. Pockets rolled his eyes, walking past him. Falak's colt was standing at the fence, watching with big intelligent eyes. The little guy was huge now. He wasn't as tall as the other arabs, but considering how small and lanky he used to be...

The spirited colt snorted and stuck his nose in Pockets' face, smelling. He smiled, "Hey, buddy."

"I got kicked out 'cause I blew up Jo's truck again," Rex finally answered in a deadpanned voice.

Pockets froze, "You...what?" He turned to stare at his smaller friend, who pulled a dramatic shrug.

"I don't know why it happens to me! All I did was touch the damn thing and it, like, imploded or something!" He took another drink, "It's okay though, Jolt's covering for me."

"That Jolt, right?" Pockets asked, pointing as a familiar electric blue chevy volt pulled up the dusty gravel drive to Jo's house.

"Awwwwwww fuck..." Rex groaned. He threw his empty hand up in exasperation, "did it blow up on you, too?"

The mech transformed in a liquid smooth motion that almost all autobots had. He stood with a sheepish look about him, "Not quite..."

"Wait a second...I recognize that look! Your lady kicked you out, huh?" Rex grinned.

"...She found out I recharged while I was supposed to be watching the sparklings yesterday."

Pockets laughed.

Rex toasted him, "That's okay, you can come hang with us manly-"

"Man-CHILD!" Shark shouted, sticking her head out the front door of Jo's house.

Rex fell out of his chair, "What the hell! I thought you was at home, babe!"

She shot him a sharp look, "If you ever payed attention to me when I'm talking, you'd know I was coming over to help watch Jo's brothers! Shit, Rex! If I'm not cooking or standing around for you to grope, I don't exist!"

"That's not true, Rae-Rae! I love you, girl!"

"Yeah, yeah!" Shark disappeared into the house, slamming the door.

Pockets smirked, "You two are so cute together!"

Rex tossed the rest of his half-spilled tea on him, "Shaddup!"

Jolt approached, sitting down beside them, "It's been a while since I've seen this place."

"Grown, hasn't it?" Pockets said, looking over the ranch with a smile, "Since Jo's mom passed, she's been working hard to keep it going. She's determined not to let this ranch shut down."

"I haven't seen that damn horse in a while," Rex asked, looking at Pockets, "where is that crazy ass Falak?"

"She sprained a leg, so she's recovering in the barn," Pockets answered. Quiet fell between the three of them.

At least until Rex looked at Jolt and asked, "Do you miss it?"

"Miss what?"

"The autobots, base, missions, whatever."

The big blue mech looked down in thought, blue optics narrowing. Pockets studied him because, honestly, he'd been wondering about that himself.

It had been a few months since Gears had dragged Demona, Jolt, and the sparklings away from base, and so far everything had been peaceful. Everyone had new scars, but were fine, Pockets included.

Optimus made an effort to stop a few times, and Jazz, as well as Mudflap and Skidz, _always _found an excuse to come over and stir up trouble. Jetfire visited, too, to see Sundance.

"Yes...and no," Jolt answered truthfully, "I miss my comrades, but I don't miss the fighting so much."

Rex nodded, "That makes sense. I can dig that."

"So is just mom, sis, and the kids at home? I know Critters still at school..." Pockets asked. Jolt nodded.

"Don't you ever wonder what the hell women talk about when we're not around?" Rex asked.

"I'd...rather not know," Pockets admitted, "be careful Rex, you're treading on dangerous territory."

"No, I'm serious! What do women talk about when their men aren't around?"

* * *

><p>"<em>Damn<em>! LOOK at that ass!"

Demona rolled her optics, "Gears..."

"I'd so tap that."

"I don't think human females your age are supposed to say things like that."

Gears cut her a sharp look, "What are you trying to say, Dem?"

Demona tried her best to look innocent in her little parking space. Gears huffed, "Look, just because you ordered doesn't mean you can't look at the menu! Jolt's a fine bot...but don't tell me you don't look at the others and say, 'Damn! Now _theres _a strapping young mech!'"

Gears grinned when her oldest grumbled out a, "Primus..."

She then went back to watching Matthew Mcconaughey run across a beach on the flat screen in the shop.

"I'm perfectly happy with what I have," Demona said, "I love Jolt, for everything that he is, even the annoying little things...like the fact every time I turn my back on him he's passed out on the floor."

Gears laughed, "That's a man for you, babe!"

"Sundance is more responsible than he is at times," Demona added, "it's shocking, really."

"He's just got nothing of real..." Gears paused, searching for a word, "if I say importance, will you get mad?"

Demona's holoform shot her a look.

"Look, my point is that he doesn't have missions to go out on, Ratchet isn't constantly on his ass about things, he just helps around the shop and keeps you and the sparklings entertained. He's probably just bored out of his fragging-"

"Freaking," Demona corrected.

"-_Freaking _brain." Gears finished. She paused, looked at Demona, "Males are ridiculous, aren't they?'

"So I've noticed."

Again, the red headed woman laughed. She leaned down over the back of the couch, smiling dreamily, "What I wouldn't give to have my man back in my arms again...God knows how much I miss him."

Demona's optics softened, "What happened to him?"

"Car wreck," Gears answered, "I was supposed to meet him somewhere...we should have known better, it was raining, the roads were slick...he spun out of control then flipped over the guard rail." Her eyes filled with sadness.

She smiled again when Demona's holoform popped up and hugged her tight. Demona said softly, "I'm sorry...that moment I thought I had lost Jolt...I lost my processor. It was like the sun itself had died...I can't imagine how hard it must be to really loose your spark mate."

"I wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for Pockets. Having a baby changes everything...but it's okay now. I've got three beautiful kids and two beautiful grand babies...speaking of which, where are those two?"

"Sundance took Flashback outside to play," Demona said, adding as if she was trying to convince herself, "in the front yard..."

"I've noticed that our little dragon likes to go on adventures."

"So have I," Demona stepped back, turning to the tv. She blinked, "this is the fleshling you've been gawking at?"

"It's human, babe, fleshling is...degrading. You should know that by now. And it makes you sound like one of them 'cons," Gears said, "and hell YES! Matthew is one hot hunk of man flesh!"

"At least he's not scrawny."

Gears waggled her eyebrows back at her, "You think the boys will get mad if I go over there and lick the screen?"

Demona laughed, "You're in a _really _good mood."

"I haven't been able to spend time with my daughter for a while! I'm trying to enjoy it!"

Demona smiled, reacting when Jolt tugged on her lightly, curious as to what she was doing. She simply pulled back to let him know everything was fine. Then she checked on her sparklings. Whatever they were doing, they were having a blast.

She blinked when she felt someone crawling up her real body. She was in her alternate form at the moment, so Gears simply laid flat on her hood. Demona's holoform walked over and settled across from her. Gears reached over and pushed her fingers through her long dark hair, "I hate the bastard, but at the same time I can't help but feel grateful to Megatron...without him I'd never come to know you."

Demona shuttered her hidden optics, "Me, too."

Demona went rigid when a sense of overwhelming panic filled her. Before she could react, the earth shuddered beneath them. Gears shot up, "What the hell-"

"MOM!" Sundance screamed from outside. Demona's engine roared, front door flying open. Gears angled her body and dropped inside in an impressive move, pulling her feet in seconds before Demona slammed the door shut and cut them off.

Demona backed out the door and tore through the junkyard, transforming on the fly when she spotted her oldest sparkling digging away at a newly toppled mound of cars. Sundance swung her head around in her panic, "Momma! Flash-he-he fell! He's stuck under here! I can't hear him anymore!"

Demona almost dropped Gears and rushed forward, swiping the top two cars before she realized that, through the bond, Flashback was fine. Thrilled, even. She froze, listening.

"Mom! What are you doing! He's hurt!" Sundance pushed.

Demona strained her audios until she picked up the excited chattering of her youngest. She stepped up the mound and looked down on the other side, optics widening when she saw the little blue sparkling sitting in the hole of a tire, smacking the wall with his hands happily.

Sundance bounced up Demona's armor to land on her shoulder, gasping, "Flash!"

Flashback tilted his head at them, then whistled, cheering, "Ma!"

_'He's fine,' _Demona told Jolt, who was almost hysterical. _'I don't know how, but he's fine, even happy.'_

Demona hopped down, raising a hand to keep Sundance from falling off, and walked towards the sparkling who was giggling madly.

"What in the name of Primus..." Demona said quietly, kneeling down in front of the sparkling, "Flashback, what..."

The sparkling reached up and grabbed at her fingers, locking down on her, "Ma."

She hesitated before lifting him into her hands. He was walking well now, but he wasn't quite balanced enough to run, so there was no possible way he'd escaped on his own. Sundance and Gears, who had made her way around by then, were stumped, too. The sparkling then said something he'd never said before.

He looked at Demona, smiling, "Pwetty white, ma."

Her optics widened.

* * *

><p><strong>Annnd this is the end of The Last Flight. I'll leave you to wonder and hope...I'll have a sneak peak of The Storyteller and Fallen Angels up soon so you can get a glimpse of what's next. <strong>

**Um, I know I said that I was going to do the one with Angelus next, but I'm having better luck with Sundance's story, so...**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Thank you to each and every one of you, I hope you enjoyed the story! We will definitely be seeing both, Sundance and Flashback in The Storyteller later on! **

**Love y'all! **

**Demona and her family and the story belongs to me. Transformers does not. **


	106. Sneak Peak

**Sneak Peak**

**Like I said in 105, I know I told you guys I'd do Angelus' story first, titled 'Fallen Angels', but I started both of them and I'm having better luck with the one about Sundance...so...**

**I'm going to put a chunk of both first chapters in here, and it's up to you guys to tell me which story you want to hear first, and if you choose, that's fine. So, here they are!**

* * *

><p><strong>1) The Storyteller: <strong>_Rose red was the color of the dragon, with wings that could carry her to the ends of the earth and a flame that was hotter than the sun. All heroes are born with a story. -Guardian Trilogy Continuation SUNDANCE-_

...A low, rolling growl tore it's way out of the mechanical dragon's throat. His eyes grew even wider when words started to flow out, in a voice that was undeniably female and undeniably _pissed_, "You picked the _wrong_ day to go hunting!"

He raised his handgun, the only thing left on him, to her red eyes. He squeezed the trigger and the bullet simply bounced off her face. She bared her fangs in a bone-chilling snarl, striking forward like a snake. Her powerful jaws closed around his body, and he squeezed his eyes shut, expecting to be crushed...

**Kinda makes you wonder if she just ate herself a human, huh? ^^ This one is all about our Sundance and will have a special appearance of a group of bots...and for the sake of cruelty, I'm NOT going to tell you who they are. :) I'm lovely, aren't I? Anyway, I've already got three chapters written for this one, so it is well underway...let me know if you wanna see this one first.**

* * *

><p><strong>2) Fallen Angels: <strong>_There was no ultimate good to shut out the evil, no undying light to show her the way back to me. There was just an innocent angel that fell for a demon in disguise, a demon that ripped out her wings and hanged her with her own GUARDIAN PROLOGUE_

...She walked through fields of corpses, femme, mech, and sparkling alike. They no longer bothered her, however. She'd seen so many in these past years that there was no point in grieving anymore.

**We were once free. The weak torn apart by those once looked up to, the guardians turning against the guarded...**

The firelight reflected off the scratched white paint of her armor. Plates of it were missing, showing old and fresh wounds. She knew how to take care of them, but she just didn't care anymore.

**Dear sister, Cybertron has fallen...  
><strong>

**For those of you who were expecting to see a cheerful, peaceful pre-war Cybertron...My Prologue begins, ironically, with a prologue...or is it a prologue? Considering it's from someone's point of view AFTER the destruction began...I gotta quit thinking in circles like that, can't be healthy for the brainmeats...Anyway, this is the one designated specifically to Angelus. And, considering that Ghost _is _her adopted older sister, she's going to be in it, too, and she's is _not _going to be the bitch she's become infamous for being in TLF. And I'm just going to tell you now, this one is going to be a big heart-breaker.**

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><p><strong>Anyway, let me know which one you wanna see first! Much love!<strong>


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